R2WinBUGS: A Package for Running WinBUGS from R

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sibylle Sturtz

2005-01-01

Full Text Available The R2WinBUGS package provides convenient functions to call WinBUGS from R. It automatically writes the data and scripts in a format readable by WinBUGS for processing in batch mode, which is possible since version 1.4. After the WinBUGS process has finished, it is possible either to read the resulting data into R by the package itself--which gives a compact graphical summary of inference and convergence diagnostics--or to use the facilities of the coda package for further analyses of the output. Examples are given to demonstrate the usage of this package.

Is Tutoring Teaching? Exploring Tutoring's Potential to Improve Mathematics Teacher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Rasche, Alexander N.

2017-01-01

This study investigated the tutoring practices of mathematics tutors working in one university tutoring center and the corresponding rationale exhibited by the mathematics tutors. This study illustrates how the tutoring practices of mathematics tutors align with the Eight Mathematics Teaching Practices outlined in NCTM's recent publication…

Hiring a Pest Management Professional for Bed Bugs

Science.gov (United States)

If you hire someone to treat your bed bug infestation, make sure they use Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques, check credentials, and know they may need multiple visits, to take apart furniture, and to use vacuums, heat, and pesticides.

Parent-administered computer-assisted tutoring targeting letter-sound knowledge: Evaluation via multiple-baseline across three preschool students.

Science.gov (United States)

DuBois, Matthew R; Volpe, Robert J; Burns, Matthew K; Hoffman, Jessica A

2016-12-01

Knowledge of letters sounds has been identified as a primary objective of preschool instruction and intervention. Despite this designation, large disparities exist in the number of letter sounds children know at school entry. Enhancing caregivers' ability to teach their preschool-aged children letter sounds may represent an effective practice for reducing this variability and ensuring that more children are prepared to experience early school success. This study used a non-concurrent multiple-baseline-across-participants design to evaluate the effectiveness of caregivers (N=3) delivering a computer-assisted tutoring program (Tutoring Buddy) targeting letter sound knowledge to their preschool-aged children. Visual analyses and effect size estimates derived from Percentage of All Non-Overlapping Data (PAND) statistics indicated consistent results for letter sound acquisition, as 6weeks of intervention yielded large effects for letter sound knowledge (LSK) across all three children. Large effect sizes were also found for letter sound fluency (LSF) and nonsense word fluency (NWF) for two children. All three caregivers rated the intervention as highly usable and were able to administer it with high levels of fidelity. Taken together, the results of the present study found Tutoring Buddy to be an effective, simple, and usable way for the caregivers to support their children's literacy development. Copyright © 2016 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bed Bug Infestations and Control Practices in China: Implications for Fighting the Global Bed Bug Resurgence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Changlu Wang

2011-04-01

Full Text Available The bed bug resurgence in North America, Europe, and Australia has elicited interest in investigating the causes of the widespread and increasing infestations and in developing more effective control strategies. In order to extend global perspectives on bed bug management, we reviewed bed bug literature in China by searching five Chinese language electronic databases. We also conducted telephone interviews of 68 pest control firms in two cities during March 2011. In addition, we conducted telephone interviews to 68 pest control companies within two cities in March 2011. Two species of bed bugs (Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus (F. are known to occur in China. These were common urban pests before the early1980s. Nationwide “Four-Pest Elimination” campaigns (bed bugs being one of the targeted pests were implemented in China from 1960 to the early 1980s. These campaigns succeeded in the elimination of bed bug infestations in most communities. Commonly used bed bug control methods included applications of hot water, sealing of bed bug harborages, physical removal, and applications of residual insecticides (mainly organophosphate sprays or dusts. Although international and domestic travel has increased rapidly in China over the past decade (2000–2010, there have only been sporadic new infestations reported in recent years. During 1999–2009, all documented bed bug infestations were found in group living facilities (military dormitories, worker dormitories, and prisons, hotels, or trains. One city (Shenzhen city near Hong Kong experienced significantly higher number of bed bug infestations. This city is characterized by a high concentration of migratory factory workers. Current bed bug control practices include educating residents, washing, reducing clutter, putting items under the hot sun in summer, and applying insecticides (pyrethroids or organophosphates. There have not been any studies or reports on bed bug insecticide

Automatic Detection of Tutoring Styles Based on Tutors' Behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Bendjebar, Safia; Lafifi, Yacine; Zedadra, Amina

2016-01-01

In e-learning systems, tutors have a significant impact on learners' life to increase their knowledge level and to make the learning process more effective. They are characterized by different features. Therefore, identifying tutoring styles is a critical step in understanding the preference of tutors on how to organize and help the learners. In…

Exploring the Relationships between Perceptions of Tutoring and Tutoring Behaviours: A Focus on Graduate Students Serving as Peer Tutors to College-Level Chemistry Students

Science.gov (United States)

Velasco, Jonathan B.; Stains, Marilyne

2015-01-01

It has been established that both tutors and tutees gain from tutoring sessions. However, tutors' benefits may be enhanced or limited depending on the type of behaviours they perform during the tutoring sessions. Although behaviours enhancing both tutor and tutee learning can be promoted by training, generalized tutor training models that are…

Do tutors matter? Assessing the impact of tutors on firstyear ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This research sought to determine if a teaching intervention using tutors in a South African university could promote epistemological access to university for first-year students. Although hiring, developing and managing tutors takes oney, time and energy, the effectiveness of tutors in the South African context is ...

Does Private Tutoring Payoff?

OpenAIRE

Gurun, Ayfer; Millimet, Daniel L.

2008-01-01

We assess the causal effect of private tutoring on the probability of university placement in Turkey. We find that tutoring increases the probability of being placed in a university when non-random selection is ignored. Moreover, among those utilizing private tutoring, greater expenditure on tutoring is also positively associated with university placement. However, we find evidence of positive selection into tutoring, but negative selection into greater expenditures among those receiving tuto...

Using Software Dependency to Bug Prediction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peng He

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Software maintenance, especially bug prediction, plays an important role in evaluating software quality and balancing development costs. This study attempts to use several quantitative network metrics to explore their relationships with bug prediction in terms of software dependency. Our work consists of four main steps. First, we constructed software dependency networks regarding five dependency scenes at the class-level granularity. Second, we used a set of nine representative and commonly used metrics—namely, centrality, degree, PageRank, and HITS, as well as modularity—to quantify the importance of each class. Third, we identified how these metrics were related to the proneness and severity of fixed bugs in Tomcat and Ant and determined the extent to which they were related. Finally, the significant metrics were considered as predictors for bug proneness and severity. The result suggests that there is a statistically significant relationship between class’s importance and bug prediction. Furthermore, betweenness centrality and out-degree metric yield an impressive accuracy for bug prediction and test prioritization. The best accuracy of our prediction for bug proneness and bug severity is up to 54.7% and 66.7% (top 50, Tomcat and 63.8% and 48.7% (top 100, Ant, respectively, within these two cases.

Coaching Tutors: An Instrumental Case Study on Testing an Integrated Framework for Tutoring Sessions

Science.gov (United States)

Holland, Alicia L.; Grant, Chris; Donthamsetty, Reshema

2017-01-01

The objective for the current qualitative case study was to examine participants' perceptions on the tutor coaching and session review frameworks. The location of the study was at the tutor coaches' place of business. At the beginning of the study, tutor coaches were trained on how to implement the tutoring coaching framework with their tutors,…

Peer tutoring for college students with learning disabilities: perceptions of tutors and tutees.

Science.gov (United States)

Vogel, Gila; Fresko, Barbara; Wertheim, Cheruta

2007-01-01

Peer tutoring is a commonly provided support service for students with learning disabilities (LD) in institutions of higher education. A large-scale survey was conducted to evaluate the PERACH peer tutoring project for students with LD at 25 universities, regional colleges, and teacher training colleges in Israel. The purpose of the study was to understand the tutoring process from the point of view of both tutees and tutors with respect to 5 main areas: tutees' needs, focus of tutoring activities, difficulties surrounding the tutoring endeavor, importance of similar study experiences, and satisfaction with the project. It is our supposition that major discrepancies in perceptions are likely to undermine the effectiveness of the tutoring. Similarities and differences in perceptions were identified, and implications that can be useful in guiding service providers are discussed.

Does supporting multiple student strategies lead to greater learning and motivation? Investigating a source of complexity in the architecture of intelligent tutoring systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Waalkens, Maaike; Aleven, Vincent; Taatgen, Niels

Intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) support students in learning a complex problem-solving skill. One feature that makes an ITS architecturally complex, and hard to build, is support for strategy freedom, that is, the ability to let students pursue multiple solution strategies within a given problem.

Tutoring executives online

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bignoux, Stephane; Sund, Kristian J.

2018-01-01

Studies of learning and student satisfaction in the context of online university programmes have largely neglected programmes catering specifically to business executives. Such executives have typically been away from higher education for a number of years, and have collected substantial practical...... experience in the subject matters they are taught. Their expectations in terms of both content and delivery may therefore be different from non-executive students. We explore perceptions of the quality of tutoring in the context of an online executive MBA programme through participant interviews. We find...... that in addition to some of the tutor behaviours already discussed in the literature, executive students look specifically for practical industry knowledge and experience in tutors, when judging how effective a tutor is. This has implications for both the recruitment and training of online executive MBA tutors....

Tutoring Executives Online

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bignoux, Stephane; Sund, Kristian J.

2016-01-01

Studies of learning and student satisfaction in the context of online university programs have largely neglected programs catering specifically to business executives. Such executives have typically been away from higher education for a number of years, and have collected substantial practical...... experience in the subject matters they are taught. Their expectations in terms of both content and delivery may therefore be different from non-executive students. We explore perceptions of the quality of tutoring in the context of an online executive MBA program through participant interviews. We find...... that in addition to some of the tutor behaviors already discussed in the literature, executive students look specifically for practical industry knowledge and experience in tutors, when judging how effective a tutor is. This has implications for both the recruitment and training of online executive MBA tutors....

Teaching the Teacher: Tutoring SimStudent Leads to More Effective Cognitive Tutor Authoring

Science.gov (United States)

Matsuda, Noboru; Cohen, William W.; Koedinger, Kenneth R.

2015-01-01

SimStudent is a machine-learning agent initially developed to help novice authors to create cognitive tutors without heavy programming. Integrated into an existing suite of software tools called Cognitive Tutor Authoring Tools (CTAT), SimStudent helps authors to create an expert model for a cognitive tutor by tutoring SimStudent on how to solve…

EarthTutor: An Interactive Intelligent Tutoring System for Remote Sensing

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, A. M.; Parton, K.; Smith, E.

2005-12-01

Earth science classes in colleges and high schools use a variety of satellite image processing software to teach earth science and remote sensing principles. However, current tutorials for image processing software are often paper-based or lecture-based and do not take advantage of the full potential of the computer context to teach, immerse, and stimulate students. We present EarthTutor, an adaptive, interactive Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) being built for NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) that is integrated directly with an image processing application. The system aims to foster the use of satellite imagery in classrooms and encourage inquiry-based, hands-on earth science scientific study by providing students with an engaging imagery analysis learning environment. EarthTutor's software is available as a plug-in to ImageJ, a free image processing system developed by the NIH (National Institute of Health). Since it is written in Java, it can be run on almost any platform and also as an applet from the Web. Labs developed for EarthTutor combine lesson content (such as HTML web pages) with interactive activities and questions. In each lab the student learns to measure, calibrate, color, slice, plot and otherwise process and analyze earth science imagery. During the activities, EarthTutor monitors students closely as they work, which allows it to provide immediate feedback that is customized to a particular student's needs. As the student moves through the labs, EarthTutor assesses the student, and tailors the presentation of the content to a student's demonstrated skill level. EarthTutor's adaptive approach is based on emerging Artificial Intelligence (AI) research. Bayesian networks are employed to model a student's proficiency with different earth science and image processing concepts. Agent behaviors are used to track the student's progress through activities and provide guidance when a student encounters difficulty. Through individual

Bayesian modeling using WinBUGS

CERN Document Server

Ntzoufras, Ioannis

2009-01-01

A hands-on introduction to the principles of Bayesian modeling using WinBUGS Bayesian Modeling Using WinBUGS provides an easily accessible introduction to the use of WinBUGS programming techniques in a variety of Bayesian modeling settings. The author provides an accessible treatment of the topic, offering readers a smooth introduction to the principles of Bayesian modeling with detailed guidance on the practical implementation of key principles. The book begins with a basic introduction to Bayesian inference and the WinBUGS software and goes on to cover key topics, including: Markov Chain Monte Carlo algorithms in Bayesian inference Generalized linear models Bayesian hierarchical models Predictive distribution and model checking Bayesian model and variable evaluation Computational notes and screen captures illustrate the use of both WinBUGS as well as R software to apply the discussed techniques. Exercises at the end of each chapter allow readers to test their understanding of the presented concepts and all ...

42 Variability Bugs in the Linux Kernel

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abal, Iago; Brabrand, Claus; Wasowski, Andrzej

2014-01-01

Feature-sensitive verification pursues effective analysis of the exponentially many variants of a program family. However, researchers lack examples of concrete bugs induced by variability, occurring in real large-scale systems. Such a collection of bugs is a requirement for goal-oriented research...... provide self-contained simplified C99 versions of the bugs, facilitating understanding and tool evaluation. Our study provides insights into the nature and occurrence of variability bugs in a large C software system, and shows in what ways variability affects and increases the complexity of software bugs....

Insecticide resistance and resistance mechanisms in bed bugs, Cimex spp. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Dang, Kai; Doggett, Stephen L; Veera Singham, G; Lee, Chow-Yang

2017-06-29

The worldwide resurgence of bed bugs [both Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus (F.)] over the past two decades is believed in large part to be due to the development of insecticide resistance. The transcriptomic and genomic studies since 2010, as well as morphological, biochemical and behavioral studies, have helped insecticide resistance research on bed bugs. Multiple resistance mechanisms, including penetration resistance through thickening or remodelling of the cuticle, metabolic resistance by increased activities of detoxification enzymes (e.g. cytochrome P450 monooxygenases and esterases), and knockdown resistance by kdr mutations, have been experimentally identified as conferring insecticide resistance in bed bugs. Other candidate resistance mechanisms, including behavioral resistance, some types of physiological resistance (e.g. increasing activities of esterases by point mutations, glutathione S-transferase, target site insensitivity including altered AChEs, GABA receptor insensitivity and altered nAChRs), symbiont-mediated resistance and other potential, yet undiscovered mechanisms may exist. This article reviews recent studies of resistance mechanisms and the genes governing insecticide resistance, potential candidate resistance mechanisms, and methods of monitoring insecticide resistance in bed bugs. This article provides an insight into the knowledge essential for the development of both insecticide resistance management (IRM) and integrated pest management (IPM) strategies for successful bed bug management.

Bug City: Beetles [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic microscopic photography,…

Bug City: Bees [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic microscopic photography,…

Peer tutoring in a medical school: perceptions of tutors and tutees.

Science.gov (United States)

Burgess, Annette; Dornan, Tim; Clarke, Antonia J; Menezes, Audrey; Mellis, Craig

2016-03-08

Peer tutoring has been described as "people from similar social groupings who are not professional teachers helping each other to learn and learning themselves by teaching". Peer tutoring is well accepted as a source of support in many medical curricula, where participation and learning involve a process of socialisation. Peer tutoring can ease the transition of the junior students from the university class environment to the hospital workplace. In this paper, we apply the Experienced Based Learning (ExBL) model to explore medical students' perceptions of their experience of taking part in a newly established peer tutoring program at a hospital based clinical school. In 2014, all students at Sydney Medical School - Central, located at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital were invited to voluntarily participate in the peer tutoring program. Year 3 students (n = 46) were invited to act as tutors for Year 1 students (n = 50), and Year 4 students (n = 60) were invited to act as tutors for Year 2 students (n = 51). Similarly, the 'tutees' were invited to take part on a voluntary basis. Students were invited to attend focus groups, which were held at the end of the program. Framework analysis was used to code and categorise data into themes. In total, 108/207 (52 %) students participated in the program. A total of 42/106 (40 %) of Year 3 and 4 students took part as tutors; and of 66/101 (65 %) of Year 1 and 2 students took part as tutees. Five focus groups were held, with 50/108 (46 %) of students voluntarily participating. Senior students (tutors) valued the opportunity to practice and improve their medical knowledge and teaching skills. Junior students (tutees) valued the opportunity for additional practice and patient interaction, within a relaxed, small group learning environment. Students perceived the peer tutoring program as affording opportunities not otherwise available within the curriculum. The peer teaching program provided a framework within the

Tutoring Online Tutors: Using Digital Badges to Encourage the Development of Online Tutoring Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Hrastinski, Stefan; Cleveland-Innes, Martha; Stenbom, Stefan

2018-01-01

Online tutors play a critical role in e-learning and need to have an appropriate set of skills in addition to subject matter expertise. This paper explores how digital badges can be used to encourage the development of online tutoring skills. Based on previous research, we defined three digital badges, which are examples of essential tutoring…

Perceptions of Tutoring Roles and Psychological Distance among Instructors, Tutors and Students at a Korean University

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Hye-Jung; Hong, Youngil; Choi, Hyoseon

2017-01-01

This study explores issues related to the tutor's role when initiating tutoring as an institutional strategy at a conventional university. Based on a pilot tutoring program implemented in four college courses, we investigated the perceptions of instructors, tutors and students regarding the role of tutoring and whether it affected the…

Bug City: Ants [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children (grades 1-6) learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic microscopic…

40 Variability Bugs in the Linux Kernel

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abal Rivas, Iago; Brabrand, Claus; Wasowski, Andrzej

2014-01-01

Feature-sensitive verification is a recent field that pursues the effective analysis of the exponential number of variants of a program family. Today researchers lack examples of concrete bugs induced by variability, and occurring in real large-scale software. Such a collection of bugs is a requi......Feature-sensitive verification is a recent field that pursues the effective analysis of the exponential number of variants of a program family. Today researchers lack examples of concrete bugs induced by variability, and occurring in real large-scale software. Such a collection of bugs...... the outcome of our analysis into a database. In addition, we provide self-contained simplified C99 versions of the bugs, facilitating understanding and tool evaluation. Our study provides insights about the nature and occurrence of variability bugs in a large C software system, and shows in what ways...

Harvesting Venom Toxins from Assassin Bugs and Other Heteropteran Insects.

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Andrew Allan; Rosenthal, Max; Undheim, Eivind E A; King, Glenn F

2018-04-21

Heteropteran insects such as assassin bugs (Reduviidae) and giant water bugs (Belostomatidae) descended from a common predaceous and venomous ancestor, and the majority of extant heteropterans retain this trophic strategy. Some heteropterans have transitioned to feeding on vertebrate blood (such as the kissing bugs, Triatominae; and bed bugs, Cimicidae) while others have reverted to feeding on plants (most Pentatomomorpha). However, with the exception of saliva used by kissing bugs to facilitate blood-feeding, little is known about heteropteran venoms compared to the venoms of spiders, scorpions and snakes. One obstacle to the characterization of heteropteran venom toxins is the structure and function of the venom/labial glands, which are both morphologically complex and perform multiple biological roles (defense, prey capture, and extra-oral digestion). In this article, we describe three methods we have successfully used to collect heteropteran venoms. First, we present electrostimulation as a convenient way to collect venom that is often lethal when injected into prey animals, and which obviates contamination by glandular tissue. Second, we show that gentle harassment of animals is sufficient to produce venom extrusion from the proboscis and/or venom spitting in some groups of heteropterans. Third, we describe methods to harvest venom toxins by dissection of anaesthetized animals to obtain the venom glands. This method is complementary to other methods, as it may allow harvesting of toxins from taxa in which electrostimulation and harassment are ineffective. These protocols will enable researchers to harvest toxins from heteropteran insects for structure-function characterization and possible applications in medicine and agriculture.

The Perceived Success of Tutoring Students with Learning Disabilities: Relations to Tutee and Tutoring Variables

Science.gov (United States)

Michael, Rinat

2016-01-01

The current study examined the contribution of two types of variables to the perceived success of a tutoring project for college students with learning disabilities (LD): tutoring-related variables (the degree of engagement in different tutoring activities and difficulties encountered during tutoring), and tutee-related variables (learning…

What makes a successful volunteer Expert Patients Programme tutor? Factors predicting satisfaction, productivity and intention to continue tutoring of a new public health workforce in the United Kingdom.

Science.gov (United States)

Macdonald, Wendy; Kontopantelis, Evangelos; Bower, Peter; Kennedy, Anne; Rogers, Anne; Reeves, David

2009-04-01

Better management of chronic conditions is a challenge for public health policy. The Expert Patients Programme was introduced into the United Kingdom to improve self-care in people with long-term conditions. To deliver self-care courses, the programme relies on the recruitment and continued commitment to delivering the courses of volunteer lay tutors who have long-term conditions. Ensuring the tutor workforce is productive, satisfied in their role and retained long-term is central to the viability of the programme. This exploratory study aimed to determine what factors predict productivity, intention to continue tutoring, and satisfaction in a sample of volunteer tutors from the Expert Patients Programme. A cross-sectional survey of 895 tutors was carried out and 518 (58%) responded. The questionnaire was designed to describe the characteristics, productivity, intention to continue tutoring, and satisfaction of tutors. Multiple linear regression analyses were used to examine the determinants of productivity, intention to continue tutoring, and satisfaction, such as patient demographics, attitudes, physical and mental health, mastery and self-esteem. Attitudes relating to personal goals, and better health were significant predictors of satisfaction with the tutor role. Only a small proportion of the variance in productivity was accounted for, and tutors were more likely to be productive when they were single, homeowners, car owners, and had lower scores on the depression scale. Overall satisfaction and personal goals were predictors of intention to continue tutoring. Demographic factors, health measures and attitudes each predicted different aspects of the experience of work conducted by the volunteer tutors. The results should prove useful for planning interventions to enhance the success of this new workforce initiative. Attempts to increase participation in courses by people from deprived backgrounds are likely to be enhanced if tutors come from similar

Unique features of a global human ectoparasite identified through sequencing of the bed bug genome.

Science.gov (United States)

Benoit, Joshua B; Adelman, Zach N; Reinhardt, Klaus; Dolan, Amanda; Poelchau, Monica; Jennings, Emily C; Szuter, Elise M; Hagan, Richard W; Gujar, Hemant; Shukla, Jayendra Nath; Zhu, Fang; Mohan, M; Nelson, David R; Rosendale, Andrew J; Derst, Christian; Resnik, Valentina; Wernig, Sebastian; Menegazzi, Pamela; Wegener, Christian; Peschel, Nicolai; Hendershot, Jacob M; Blenau, Wolfgang; Predel, Reinhard; Johnston, Paul R; Ioannidis, Panagiotis; Waterhouse, Robert M; Nauen, Ralf; Schorn, Corinna; Ott, Mark-Christoph; Maiwald, Frank; Johnston, J Spencer; Gondhalekar, Ameya D; Scharf, Michael E; Peterson, Brittany F; Raje, Kapil R; Hottel, Benjamin A; Armisén, David; Crumière, Antonin Jean Johan; Refki, Peter Nagui; Santos, Maria Emilia; Sghaier, Essia; Viala, Sèverine; Khila, Abderrahman; Ahn, Seung-Joon; Childers, Christopher; Lee, Chien-Yueh; Lin, Han; Hughes, Daniel S T; Duncan, Elizabeth J; Murali, Shwetha C; Qu, Jiaxin; Dugan, Shannon; Lee, Sandra L; Chao, Hsu; Dinh, Huyen; Han, Yi; Doddapaneni, Harshavardhan; Worley, Kim C; Muzny, Donna M; Wheeler, David; Panfilio, Kristen A; Vargas Jentzsch, Iris M; Vargo, Edward L; Booth, Warren; Friedrich, Markus; Weirauch, Matthew T; Anderson, Michelle A E; Jones, Jeffery W; Mittapalli, Omprakash; Zhao, Chaoyang; Zhou, Jing-Jiang; Evans, Jay D; Attardo, Geoffrey M; Robertson, Hugh M; Zdobnov, Evgeny M; Ribeiro, Jose M C; Gibbs, Richard A; Werren, John H; Palli, Subba R; Schal, Coby; Richards, Stephen

2016-02-02

The bed bug, Cimex lectularius, has re-established itself as a ubiquitous human ectoparasite throughout much of the world during the past two decades. This global resurgence is likely linked to increased international travel and commerce in addition to widespread insecticide resistance. Analyses of the C. lectularius sequenced genome (650 Mb) and 14,220 predicted protein-coding genes provide a comprehensive representation of genes that are linked to traumatic insemination, a reduced chemosensory repertoire of genes related to obligate hematophagy, host-symbiont interactions, and several mechanisms of insecticide resistance. In addition, we document the presence of multiple putative lateral gene transfer events. Genome sequencing and annotation establish a solid foundation for future research on mechanisms of insecticide resistance, human-bed bug and symbiont-bed bug associations, and unique features of bed bug biology that contribute to the unprecedented success of C. lectularius as a human ectoparasite.

Unique features of a global human ectoparasite identified through sequencing of the bed bug genome

Science.gov (United States)

Benoit, Joshua B.; Adelman, Zach N.; Reinhardt, Klaus; Dolan, Amanda; Poelchau, Monica; Jennings, Emily C.; Szuter, Elise M.; Hagan, Richard W.; Gujar, Hemant; Shukla, Jayendra Nath; Zhu, Fang; Mohan, M.; Nelson, David R.; Rosendale, Andrew J.; Derst, Christian; Resnik, Valentina; Wernig, Sebastian; Menegazzi, Pamela; Wegener, Christian; Peschel, Nicolai; Hendershot, Jacob M.; Blenau, Wolfgang; Predel, Reinhard; Johnston, Paul R.; Ioannidis, Panagiotis; Waterhouse, Robert M.; Nauen, Ralf; Schorn, Corinna; Ott, Mark-Christoph; Maiwald, Frank; Johnston, J. Spencer; Gondhalekar, Ameya D.; Scharf, Michael E.; Peterson, Brittany F.; Raje, Kapil R.; Hottel, Benjamin A.; Armisén, David; Crumière, Antonin Jean Johan; Refki, Peter Nagui; Santos, Maria Emilia; Sghaier, Essia; Viala, Sèverine; Khila, Abderrahman; Ahn, Seung-Joon; Childers, Christopher; Lee, Chien-Yueh; Lin, Han; Hughes, Daniel S. T.; Duncan, Elizabeth J.; Murali, Shwetha C.; Qu, Jiaxin; Dugan, Shannon; Lee, Sandra L.; Chao, Hsu; Dinh, Huyen; Han, Yi; Doddapaneni, Harshavardhan; Worley, Kim C.; Muzny, Donna M.; Wheeler, David; Panfilio, Kristen A.; Vargas Jentzsch, Iris M.; Vargo, Edward L.; Booth, Warren; Friedrich, Markus; Weirauch, Matthew T.; Anderson, Michelle A. E.; Jones, Jeffery W.; Mittapalli, Omprakash; Zhao, Chaoyang; Zhou, Jing-Jiang; Evans, Jay D.; Attardo, Geoffrey M.; Robertson, Hugh M.; Zdobnov, Evgeny M.; Ribeiro, Jose M. C.; Gibbs, Richard A.; Werren, John H.; Palli, Subba R.; Schal, Coby; Richards, Stephen

2016-01-01

The bed bug, Cimex lectularius, has re-established itself as a ubiquitous human ectoparasite throughout much of the world during the past two decades. This global resurgence is likely linked to increased international travel and commerce in addition to widespread insecticide resistance. Analyses of the C. lectularius sequenced genome (650 Mb) and 14,220 predicted protein-coding genes provide a comprehensive representation of genes that are linked to traumatic insemination, a reduced chemosensory repertoire of genes related to obligate hematophagy, host–symbiont interactions, and several mechanisms of insecticide resistance. In addition, we document the presence of multiple putative lateral gene transfer events. Genome sequencing and annotation establish a solid foundation for future research on mechanisms of insecticide resistance, human–bed bug and symbiont–bed bug associations, and unique features of bed bug biology that contribute to the unprecedented success of C. lectularius as a human ectoparasite. PMID:26836814

The Revitalized Tutoring Center

Science.gov (United States)

Koselak, Jeremy

2017-01-01

One high-leverage strategy rooted in a strong research base--the revitalized tutoring center--provides a wealth of opportunity to students who may be otherwise underserved. This embedded, open-all-day tutoring center supports collaborative teacher teams by using peer tutors and community volunteers. By centralizing resources and providing supports…

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... Tips to prevent and treat bug bites Although most bug bites are harmless, some can spread dangerous ... one’s greatest efforts, bug bites still happen. Fortunately, most bug bites and stings can be safely treated ...

Effectiveness of Bed Bug Pesticides

Science.gov (United States)

Before EPA allows a bed bug claim on a label, the product must be supported by data showing it will kill bed bugs when applied according to the label. Also consider factors such as extent of infestation, site preparation, and insect life stages.

Peer Tutoring: A Training and Facilitation Guide

Science.gov (United States)

Pirini, Jesse

2017-01-01

Students can make huge gains in academic grades and confidence with the help of peer tutoring. This book provides practical, research-based strategies for anyone wanting to run a peer tutoring programme or to improve their own tutoring practice. The book focuses on two key components of tutoring: the tutoring relationship and tutoring tools. The…

Does private tutoring increase students' academic performance? Evidence from Turkey

Science.gov (United States)

Berberoğlu, Giray; Tansel, Aysit

2014-10-01

This paper investigates the effectiveness of private tutoring in Turkey. The authors introduce their study by providing some background information on the two major national examinations and three different kinds of tutoring. They then describe how they aimed to analyse whether attending private tutoring centres (PTCs) enhances Turkish students' academic performance. By way of multiple linear regression analysis, their study sought to evaluate whether the impact of private tutoring varies in different subject areas, taking into account several student-related characteristics such as family and academic backgrounds as well as interest in and perception of academic success. In terms of subject areas, the results indicate that while private tutoring does have a positive impact on academic performance in mathematics and Turkish language, this is not the case in natural sciences. However, as evidenced by the effect sizes, these impacts are rather small compared to the impacts of other variables such as interest in and perception of academic success, high school graduation fields of study, high school cumulative grade point average (CGPA), parental education and students' sociocultural background. While the authors point out that more research on the impact of further important variables needs to be done, their view is that school seems to be an important factor for determining students' academic performance.

The BUG BITBUS Universal Gateway

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nawrocki, G.

1996-01-01

The BITBUS Universal Gateway (BUG) provides a unique, cost effective solution to many different computer interface problems. Each BUG node, utilizing ''on board'' intelligence, has the ability to provide a communication link between BITBUS protocol and other computer-signal interfaces. Among them, IEEE-488, RS232, and raw analog and binary signal 1/0. BITBUS is a multidrop, multinode link with the ability to communicate over great distances. By using this method of signal transfer, along with the communication conversion ability of the BUG, one could accomplish such things as the ability to run IEEE-488 instruments over great distances, extend a multidrop links to RS232 instruments, and provide a convenient interface point for remote analog and binary 1/0 signals, all on one homogeneous network. The BUG not only provides this through the wired ''twisted pair'' standard of BITBUS, but extends the ability to fiber optic communications for signal transfer over extreme distances and through electrically ''noisy'' environments

Find a Bed Bug Pesticide Product

Science.gov (United States)

Introduces the Bed Bug Product Search Tool, to help consumers find EPA-registered pesticides for bed bug infestation control. Inclusion in this database is not an endorsement. Always follow label directions carefully.

Bug City: Aquatic Insects [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic microscopic photography,…

Bug City: Flies & Mosquitoes [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children (grades 1-6) learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon, including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic…

Bug City: Ladybugs & Fireflies [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children (grades 1-6) learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon, including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic…

A Comparison of Infectivity between Polyhedra of the Spodoptera litura Multiple Nucleopolyhedrovirus Before and After Passage Through the Gut of the Stink Bug, Eocanthecona furcellata

OpenAIRE

Gupta, R. K.; Gani, Mudasir; Jasrotia, P.; Srivastava, K.; Kaul, V.

2014-01-01

Infectivity of polyhedra of Spodoptera litura multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus before and after passage through the gut of the predatory stink bug, Eocanthecona furcellata Wolff (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) was compared through field bioassay studies. Three sets of E. furcellata were used for bioassays and these were allowed to feed on a single meal of five third instar Oriental leaf worm, Spodoptera litura (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), that were infected with polyhedra before passage, afte...

Towards Easing the Diagnosis of Bugs in OS Code

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stuart, Henrik; Hansen, René Rydhof; Lawall, Julia Laetitia

2007-01-01

The rapid detection and treatment of bugs in operating systems code is essential to maintain the overall security and dependability of a computing system.  A number of techniques have been proposed for detecting bugs, but little has been done to help developers analyze and treat them.  In this pa......The rapid detection and treatment of bugs in operating systems code is essential to maintain the overall security and dependability of a computing system.  A number of techniques have been proposed for detecting bugs, but little has been done to help developers analyze and treat them.......  In this paper we propose to combine bug-finding rules with transformations that automatically introduce bug-fixes or workarounds when a possible bug is detected.  This work builds on our previous work on the Coccinelle tool, which targets device driver evolution....

Variability Bugs in Highly Configurable Systems: A Qualitative Analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abal, Iago; Melo, Jean; Stanciulescu, Stefan

2018-01-01

Variability-sensitive verification pursues effective analysis of the exponentially many variants in number of features of a program family. Several variability-aware techniques have been proposed, but researchers still lack examples of concrete bugs induced by variability, occurring in real large......-scale systems. A collection of real world bugs is needed to evaluate tool implementations of variability-sensitive analyses by testing them on real bugs. We present a qualitative study of 98 diverse variability bugs collected from bug-fixing commits in the Apache, BusyBox, Linux kernel and Marlin repositories....... We analyze each of the bugs, and record the results in a database. For each bug, we create a self-contained simplified C99 version and a simplified patch, in order to help researchers who are not experts on these subject studies to understand them, so that they can use it for evaluation...

Implementing a centralized institutional peer tutoring program.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaughf, Natalie White; Foster, Penni Smith

2016-01-01

Peer tutoring has been found to be beneficial to both students and peer tutors in health sciences education programs. This article describes the implementation of a centralized, institutional peer tutoring program at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, an academic health science center in the U.S. The Program: This multispecialty peer tutoring program paired students experiencing academic difficulties with peer tutors who showed prior academic success, professionalism and effective communication skills. The program allowed students and peer tutors to coordinate their own tutoring services. Evaluations by both students and peer tutors showed satisfaction with the program. Recommendations for developing and implementing an effective peer tutoring program are presented, including utilization of an online system, consistent program policy with high professionalism expectations, funding, program evaluation and data tracking.

Protecting Your Home from Bed Bugs

Science.gov (United States)

... your home: Inspect the luggage rack in your hotel room for bed bugs. Check secondhand furniture, beds, ... with Bed Bug Problems Discover. Accessibility EPA Administrator Budget & Performance Contracting Grants January 19, 2017 Web Snapshot ...

The Face of Private Tutoring in Russia: Evidence from Online Marketing by Private Tutors

Science.gov (United States)

Kozar, Olga

2013-01-01

Private tutoring is a common and worldwide phenomenon. However, there is a dearth of up-to-date research on private tutoring compared with that on institutional one-to-one teaching, which could be explained by challenges associated with data collection. This article proposes using publicly available online advertisements of private tutors as a…

Tips for Reading Tutors = Consejos para los Tutores en Lectura.

Science.gov (United States)

Department of Education, Washington, DC.

Reading is the basis for learning and school success. While reading is learned primarily in the classroom, many students need extra time and help. Research shows that tutoring is a great way for individuals and groups outside school to support learning, but effective tutoring requires appropriate training and careful planning. This brochure,…

Peer Tutoring at Colleges and Universities

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Mikyong Minsun

2015-01-01

This paper focuses on the important roles of peer tutoring and peer tutoring services that utilize student tutors in higher education. First, the roles and potential benefits of peer tutoring are identified and reviewed as they apply to various dimensions of student development. Second, the impacts, benefits, and extended beneficiaries of peer…

Bed Bug Guidance for School Nurses

Science.gov (United States)

School nurses are often called upon to provide vital information to students, parents, teachers, and administrators. These tips on identifying, managing and preventing bed bugs will help you to effectively respond if bed bugs appear in your school.

Assassin bug uses aggressive mimicry to lure spider prey.

Science.gov (United States)

Wignall, Anne E; Taylor, Phillip W

2011-05-07

Assassin bugs (Stenolemus bituberus) hunt web-building spiders by invading the web and plucking the silk to generate vibrations that lure the resident spider into striking range. To test whether vibrations generated by bugs aggressively mimic the vibrations generated by insect prey, we compared the responses of spiders to bugs with how they responded to prey, courting male spiders and leaves falling into the web. We also analysed the associated vibrations. Similar spider orientation and approach behaviours were observed in response to vibrations from bugs and prey, whereas different behaviours were observed in response to vibrations from male spiders and leaves. Peak frequency and duration of vibrations generated by bugs were similar to those generated by prey and courting males. Further, vibrations from bugs had a temporal structure and amplitude that were similar to vibrations generated by leg and body movements of prey and distinctly different to vibrations from courting males or leaves, or prey beating their wings. To be an effective predator, bugs do not need to mimic the full range of prey vibrations. Instead bugs are general mimics of a subset of prey vibrations that fall within the range of vibrations classified by spiders as 'prey'.

Stink Bug Feeding Induces Fluorescence in Developing Cotton Bolls

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Toews Michael D

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae comprise a critically important insect pest complex affecting 12 major crops worldwide including cotton. In the US, stink bug damage to developing cotton bolls causes boll abscission, lint staining, reduced fiber quality, and reduced yields with estimated losses ranging from 10 to 60 million dollars annually. Unfortunately, scouting for stink bug damage in the field is laborious and excessively time consuming. To improve scouting accuracy and efficiency, we investigated fluorescence changes in cotton boll tissues as a result of stink bug feeding. Results Fluorescent imaging under long-wave ultraviolet light showed that stink bug-damaged lint, the inner carpal wall, and the outside of the boll emitted strong blue-green fluorescence in a circular region near the puncture wound, whereas undamaged tissue emissions occurred at different wavelengths; the much weaker emission of undamaged tissue was dominated by chlorophyll fluorescence. We further characterized the optimum emission and excitation spectra to distinguish between stink bug damaged bolls from undamaged bolls. Conclusions The observed characteristic fluorescence peaks associated with stink bug damage give rise to a fluorescence-based method to rapidly distinguish between undamaged and stink bug damaged cotton bolls. Based on the fluorescent fingerprint, we envision a fluorescence reflectance imaging or a fluorescence ratiometric device to assist pest management professionals with rapidly determining the extent of stink bug damage in a cotton field.

Consumers as tutors – legitimate teachers?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Owen Cathy

2004-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The aim of this study was to research the feasibility of training mental health consumers as tutors for 4th year medical students in psychiatry. Methods A partnership between a consumer network and an academic unit in Psychological Medicine was formed to jointly develop a training package for consumer tutors and a curriculum in interviewing skills for medical students. Student attitudes to mental health consumers were measured pre and post the program. All tutorial evaluation data was analysed using univariate statistics. Both tutors and students evaluated the teaching program using a 4 point rating scale. The mean scores for teaching and content for both students and tutors were compared using an independent samples t-test. Results Consumer tutors were successfully trained and accredited as tutors and able to sustain delivery of tutorials over a 4 year period. The study found that whilst the medical students started with positive attitudes towards consumers prior to the program, there was a general trend towards improved attitude across all measures. Other outcomes for tutors and students (both positive and negative are described. Conclusions Consumer tutors along with professional tutors have a place in the education of medical students, are an untapped resource and deliver largely positive outcomes for students and themselves. Further possible developments are described.

Medical faculty opinions of peer tutoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Rudland, Joy R; Rennie, Sarah C

2014-01-01

Peer tutoring is a well-researched and established method of learning defined as 'a medical student facilitating the learning of another medical student'. While it has been adopted in many medical schools, other schools may be reluctant to embrace this approach. The attitude of the teaching staff, responsible for organizing and or teaching students in an undergraduate medical course to formal peer teaching will affect how it is introduced and operationalized. This study elicits faculty opinions on how best to introduce peer tutoring for medical students. Structured telephone interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using thematic analysis. The interviews were with medically qualified staff responsible for organizing or teaching undergraduate medical students at a New Zealand medical school. Six questions were posed regarding perceived advantages and disadvantages of peer tutoring and how the school and staff could support a peer-tutoring scheme if one was introduced. Staff generally supported the peer tutoring concept, offering a safe environment for learning with its teachers being so close in career stage to the learners. They also say disadvantages when the student-teachers imparted wrong information and when schools used peer tutoring to justify a reduction in teaching staff. Subjects felt that faculty would be more accepting of peer tutoring if efforts were made to build staff 'buy in' and empowerment, train peer tutors and introduce a solid evaluation process. Staff of our school expressed some concerns about peer tutoring that are not supported in the literature, signaling a need for better communication about the benefits and disadvantages of peer tutoring.

Kissing Bug ( spp. Intrusion into Homes: Troublesome Bites and Domiciliation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephen A. Klotz

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Kissing bugs ( Triatoma spp. frequently enter homes and bite human and pet occupants. Bites may lead to severe allergic reactions and, in some cases, death. Kissing bugs are also vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi , the cause of Chagas disease. In general, modern houses in the United States are not conducive to domiciliation of kissing bugs (bugs living out their entire life within the home with the presence of eggs, nymphs, adults, and exuviae. Construction features such as concrete foundations, solid walls and ceilings, window screens, tight thresholds for doors and windows, and other measures impede bug entry into homes, and air conditioning reduces the need for open doors and windows. Where Chagas disease is endemic in Mexico and Central and South America, homes often have thatch roofs, adobe walls, and open doors and windows. We investigated numerous instances of kissing bug intrusions into homes in Southern Arizona, California, and Louisiana and documented the reactions to kissing bug bites. Our work confirms the importance of modern home construction in limiting kissing bug intrusions. Older homes, especially those lacking modern screening, caulking, and weather stripping to reduce air leakage, may be subject to kissing bug intrusions and domiciliation. We describe a community in Southern Arizona where domiciliation of homes by Triatoma recurva is common. We also provide recent data regarding kissing bug bites and allergic reactions to the bites.

Research Methods Tutor: evaluation of a dialogue-based tutoring system in the classroom.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnott, Elizabeth; Hastings, Peter; Allbritton, David

2008-08-01

Research Methods Tutor (RMT) is a dialogue-based intelligent tutoring system for use in conjunction with undergraduate psychology research methods courses. RMT includes five topics that correspond to the curriculum of introductory research methods courses: ethics, variables, reliability, validity, and experimental design. We evaluated the effectiveness of the RMT system in the classroom using a nonequivalent control group design. Students in three classes (n = 83) used RMT, and students in two classes (n = 53) did not use RMT. Results indicated that the use of RMT yieldedstrong learning gains of 0.75 standard deviations above classroom instruction alone. Further, the dialogue-based tutoring condition of the system resulted in higher gains than did the textbook-style condition (CAI version) of the system. Future directions for RMT include the addition of new topics and tutoring elements.

Mining Bug Databases for Unidentified Software Vulnerabilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dumidu Wijayasekara; Milos Manic; Jason Wright; Miles McQueen

2012-06-01

Identifying software vulnerabilities is becoming more important as critical and sensitive systems increasingly rely on complex software systems. It has been suggested in previous work that some bugs are only identified as vulnerabilities long after the bug has been made public. These vulnerabilities are known as hidden impact vulnerabilities. This paper discusses the feasibility and necessity to mine common publicly available bug databases for vulnerabilities that are yet to be identified. We present bug database analysis of two well known and frequently used software packages, namely Linux kernel and MySQL. It is shown that for both Linux and MySQL, a significant portion of vulnerabilities that were discovered for the time period from January 2006 to April 2011 were hidden impact vulnerabilities. It is also shown that the percentage of hidden impact vulnerabilities has increased in the last two years, for both software packages. We then propose an improved hidden impact vulnerability identification methodology based on text mining bug databases, and conclude by discussing a few potential problems faced by such a classifier.

[Self-audit and tutor accreditation].

Science.gov (United States)

Ezquerra Lezcano, Matilde; Tamayo Ojeda, Carmen; Calvet Junoy, Silvia; Avellana Revuelta, Esteve; Vila-Coll, María Antonia; Morera Jordán, Concepción

2010-02-01

To describe the experience of using self-audit (SA) as a means of accrediting family and community medicine tutors, to analyse the knowledge that the tutors have on this self-assessment methodology, and to record their opinions on this method. Retrospective descriptive study and analysis of an opinion questionnaire. Family and community medicine teaching units (TU) in Catalonia. Tutors from family and community medicine TU in Catalonia (July 2001-July 2008). Training of the tutors in SA methodology, creation of a reference group and a correction cycle. Correction by peers of the SAs performed by the tutors according to previously determined criteria and subsequent issue of a report-feedback. Self-administered questionnaire by a group of TU tutors. A total of 673 SA were performed. The most frequent topic selected was diabetes mellitus in 27.9% of cases. The overall evaluation of the SA from a methodological point of view was correct in 44.5% of cases, improvable in 45.3%, and deficient in 10.2%. A total of 300 opinion questionnaires were issued. The response rate was 151/300 (50.03%). On the question about the usefulness of the SA in professional practice, 12% considered it very useful, 56% adequate, and 32% of little use or not useful. As regards whether it was a good means for the re-accreditation or accreditation of tutors, 66% considered that it was not. A high percentage of the SAs analysed are not carried out correctly, which indicates that tutors do not know this self-assessment method very well. They consider that SAs are a useful tool for improving clinical practice, but not a good means for accreditation and re-accreditation.

Bug City: Crickets, Grasshoppers & Friends [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children (grades 1-6) learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon, including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic…

Bug City: Spiders and Scorpions [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic microscopic photography,…

Bug City: Butterflies and Moths [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic microscopic photography,…

Effects of training peer tutors in content knowledge versus tutoring skills on giving feedback to help tutees’ complex tasks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hsiao, Amy; Brouns, Francis; Van Bruggen, Jan; Sloep, Peter

2015-01-01

This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of training tutors in content knowledge of a particular domain versus training them in tutoring skills of pedagogical knowledge when tutoring on a complex tutee task. Forty-seven tutor-tutee pairs of fourth year secondary school students were created

Computer assisted tutoring in radiology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeffery, N.

1997-02-01

The computer-based tutoring of visual concepts such as radiological images is a largely unexplored area. A review of the literature highlights limited use of computers as a means of radiological education, with the majority of systems being little more than hypermedia prototypes, on-line teaching files, and passive CD-Roms. Very few of the systems discussed in the research literature draw on the work from cognitive science and educational psychology for tutoring visual concepts. This thesis details and evaluates a method for indexing and retrieving images from large image databases via a cognitively informed graphical representation of visual concepts. This representation is derived using Multiple Correspondence Analysis from a statistical analysis of features present in the images. It is intended that this representation be used to assist in the computer based teaching of any discipline that requires the tutoring of visual concepts. The domain used as a test bed for this research is Magnetic Resonance Imaging in neuroradiology. Tutoring the interpretation of MR scans of the head represents a real practical problem due to the inherent complexity of the brain and variations in tissue contrast within image sequence and disease/pathology. The literature of concept categorisation and representation is critically reviewed to inform the design of a graphical representation of a concept (a pathology in the application domain). A specification for the design of an explicit representation of visual concepts is drawn from this literature review, together with methods of tutoring based around this model. A methodology for producing this representation is described, and implemented in the development of an overview plot for the concept of a disease of the brain, with associated statistical measures derived and operationalised for typicality and similarity of cases within a disease. These measures are precursors to the development of computer based tutoring strategies for image

Computer assisted tutoring in radiology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeffery, N

1997-02-01

The computer-based tutoring of visual concepts such as radiological images is a largely unexplored area. A review of the literature highlights limited use of computers as a means of radiological education, with the majority of systems being little more than hypermedia prototypes, on-line teaching files, and passive CD-Roms. Very few of the systems discussed in the research literature draw on the work from cognitive science and educational psychology for tutoring visual concepts. This thesis details and evaluates a method for indexing and retrieving images from large image databases via a cognitively informed graphical representation of visual concepts. This representation is derived using Multiple Correspondence Analysis from a statistical analysis of features present in the images. It is intended that this representation be used to assist in the computer based teaching of any discipline that requires the tutoring of visual concepts. The domain used as a test bed for this research is Magnetic Resonance Imaging in neuroradiology. Tutoring the interpretation of MR scans of the head represents a real practical problem due to the inherent complexity of the brain and variations in tissue contrast within image sequence and disease/pathology. The literature of concept categorisation and representation is critically reviewed to inform the design of a graphical representation of a concept (a pathology in the application domain). A specification for the design of an explicit representation of visual concepts is drawn from this literature review, together with methods of tutoring based around this model. A methodology for producing this representation is described, and implemented in the development of an overview plot for the concept of a disease of the brain, with associated statistical measures derived and operationalised for typicality and similarity of cases within a disease. These measures are precursors to the development of computer based tutoring strategies for image

The Effects of Scripted Peer Tutoring and Programming Common Stimuli on Social Interactions of a Student with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Science.gov (United States)

Petursdottir, Anna-Lind; McComas, Jennifer; McMaster, Kristen; Horner, Kathy

2007-01-01

This study examined the effects of scripted peer-tutoring reading activities, with and without programmed common play-related stimuli, on social interactions between a kindergartner with autism spectrum disorder and his typically developing peer-tutoring partners during free play. A withdrawal design with multiple baselines across peers showed no effects of peer tutoring on social interactions. A withdrawal design with 1 peer and continuing baselines across the other 2 peers showed that adding play-related common stimuli to the peer-tutoring activity increased social interactions during free play. PMID:17624077

Machine Learning or Information Retrieval Techniques for Bug Triaging: Which is better?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anjali Goyal

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Bugs are the inevitable part of a software system. Nowadays, large software development projects even release beta versions of their products to gather bug reports from users. The collected bug reports are then worked upon by various developers in order to resolve the defects and make the final software product more reliable. The high frequency of incoming bugs makes the bug handling a difficult and time consuming task. Bug assignment is an integral part of bug triaging that aims at the process of assigning a suitable developer for the reported bug who corrects the source code in order to resolve the bug. There are various semi and fully automated techniques to ease the task of bug assignment. This paper presents the current state of the art of various techniques used for bug report assignment. Through exhaustive research, the authors have observed that machine learning and information retrieval based bug assignment approaches are most popular in literature. A deeper investigation has shown that the trend of techniques is taking a shift from machine learning based approaches towards information retrieval based approaches. Therefore, the focus of this work is to find the reason behind the observed drift and thus a comparative analysis is conducted on the bug reports of the Mozilla, Eclipse, Gnome and Open Office projects in the Bugzilla repository. The results of the study show that the information retrieval based technique yields better efficiency in recommending the developers for bug reports.

Supporting Tutoring Within a Namibian Environmental Education ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper is based on a case study of tutoring in the Namibian Environmental Education Certificate (NEEC) Course. In order to support tutoring, the National NEEC Coordinator investigated the way NEEC tutors are supported and the kinds of challenges faced in the tutoring process. The case study was framed within a ...

Peer and Cross-Age Tutoring. ERIC Digest, Number 79.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaustad, Joan

One-to-one tutoring programs, such as peer and cross-age tutoring, can result in emotional and learning benefits for the tutor and the tutee. Peer tutoring involves two students of the same age. In cross-age tutoring, the tutor is older than the tutee. The Willamette High School Peer Tutoring Program in Eugene, Oregon; the Coca-Cola Valued Youth…

NRFixer: Sentiment Based Model for Predicting the Fixability of Non-Reproducible Bugs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anjali Goyal

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Software maintenance is an essential step in software development life cycle. Nowadays, software companies spend approximately 45\\% of total cost in maintenance activities. Large software projects maintain bug repositories to collect, organize and resolve bug reports. Sometimes it is difficult to reproduce the reported bug with the information present in a bug report and thus this bug is marked with resolution non-reproducible (NR. When NR bugs are reconsidered, a few of them might get fixed (NR-to-fix leaving the others with the same resolution (NR. To analyse the behaviour of developers towards NR-to-fix and NR bugs, the sentiment analysis of NR bug report textual contents has been conducted. The sentiment analysis of bug reports shows that NR bugs' sentiments incline towards more negativity than reproducible bugs. Also, there is a noticeable opinion drift found in the sentiments of NR-to-fix bug reports. Observations driven from this analysis were an inspiration to develop a model that can judge the fixability of NR bugs. Thus a framework, {NRFixer,} which predicts the probability of NR bug fixation, is proposed. {NRFixer} was evaluated with two dimensions. The first dimension considers meta-fields of bug reports (model-1 and the other dimension additionally incorporates the sentiments (model-2 of developers for prediction. Both models were compared using various machine learning classifiers (Zero-R, naive Bayes, J48, random tree and random forest. The bug reports of Firefox and Eclipse projects were used to test {NRFixer}. In Firefox and Eclipse projects, J48 and Naive Bayes classifiers achieve the best prediction accuracy, respectively. It was observed that the inclusion of sentiments in the prediction model shows a rise in the prediction accuracy ranging from 2 to 5\\% for various classifiers.

Side effects of kaolin particle films on apple orchard bug, beetle and spider communities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Marko, V.; Bogya, S.; Kondorosy, E.; Blommers, L.H.M.

2010-01-01

The effects of multiple applications of hydrophobic kaolin particle film on apple orchard bug (Heteroptera), beetle (Coleoptera) and spider (Araneae) assemblages were studied in the Netherlands. Insecticide-free orchard plots served as a control. The kaolin applications significantly reduced the

Adaptive Tutoring for Self-Regulated Learning: A Tutorial on Tutoring Systems

Science.gov (United States)

2014-12-01

impact learning with effect sizes equivalent to raising average (“C”) students to experts (“A” students) through tailored instruction and...classification using physiological sensors (Brawner and Goldberg, 2012; Goldberg & Brawner, 2012; Kokini, et al, 2012) • EEGs – Advanced Brain ... IQ , EQ, adaptability…) Merrill, D. , Reiser, B, Ranney, M., and Trafton, J. (1992). Effective Tutoring Techniques: A Comparison of Human Tutors and

Synchronic tutoring of a virtual community

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Simons, P.R.J.; Ligorio, M.B.; Talamo, A.

2002-01-01

The role of tutors has changed over time, depending on models of learning and on the technology available. This article discusses the evolution of the tutor role and presents a new model concerning the tutoring functions in a synchronous virtual community. The definition of a virtual community

An integrated 2-year clinical skills peer tutoring scheme in a UK-based medical school: perceptions of tutees and peer tutors

Science.gov (United States)

2018-01-01

Background Several benefits of peer tutoring in medical school teaching have been described. However, there is a lack of research on the perceptions of peer tutoring, particularly from tutees who partake in a long-term clinical skills scheme integrated into the medical school curriculum. This study evaluates the opinions of preclinical tutees at the end of a 2-year peer-tutored clinical skills program and peer tutors themselves. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in a UK-based medical school that primarily utilizes peer tutoring for clinical skills teaching. A questionnaire was designed to assess the views of preclinical tutees and peer tutors. Likert scales were used to grade responses and comment boxes to collect qualitative data. Results Sixty-five questionnaires were collected (52 tutees, 13 peer tutors). Seventy-nine percent of students felt satisfied with their teaching, and 70% felt adequately prepared for clinical placements. Furthermore, 79% believed that peer tutoring is the most effective method for clinical skills teaching. When compared to faculty teaching, tutees preferred being taught by peer tutors (63%), felt more confident (73%), and were more willing to engage (77%). All peer tutors felt that teaching made them more confident in their Objective Structured Clinical Examination performance, and 91% agreed that being a tutor made them consider pursuing teaching in the future. Thematic analysis of qualitative data identified 3 themes regarding peer tutoring: a more comfortable environment (69%), a more personalized teaching approach (34%), and variation in content taught (14%). Conclusion Preclinical tutees prefer being taught clinical skills by peer tutors compared to faculty, with the peer tutors also benefitting. Studies such as this, looking at long-term schemes, further validate peer tutoring and may encourage more medical schools to adopt this method as an effective way of clinical skills teaching. PMID:29922105

Effects of Training Peer Tutors in Content Knowledge versus Tutoring Skills on Giving Feedback to Help Tutees' Complex Tasks

Science.gov (United States)

Hsiao, Ya Ping; Brouns, Francis; van Bruggen, Jan; Sloep, Peter B.

2015-01-01

This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of training tutors in content knowledge of a particular domain versus training them in tutoring skills of pedagogical knowledge when tutoring on a complex tutee task. Forty-seven tutor--tutee pairs of fourth-year secondary school students were created and assigned to one of the two treatments.…

Cross-Age Peer Tutoring in Physics: Tutors, Tutees, and Achievement in Electricity

Science.gov (United States)

Korner, Marianne; Hopf, Martin

2015-01-01

International comparisons reveal that lower-secondary-level students in Austria perform below the OECD mean in science. Guided by the search for remedies and improvements in science teaching, this study investigates whether cross-age peer tutoring is an appropriate method for teaching physics. A modern and concise definition of peer tutoring is…

Bed Bug (Cimex lectularius L. Population Composition as Determined by Baited Traps

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth J. Schaafsma

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Two established field populations of bed bugs were sampled using host-mimicking traps baited with a combination of CO2, heat and a synthetic kairomone. The proportion of first instar nymphs (between 52% and 78% of all captured insects was significantly higher than reported in previous studies, which had employed different sampling methods. The proportion of adults was correspondingly much lower than previously reported, between 5% and 7% of total capture. As many as 120 bed bugs were captured in a single trap in one night; the variation in catches between sampling locations within the same room and between days at the same location indicates that multiple nights of trapping may be required to obtain an accurate representation of population structure.

Role of vision and mechanoreception in bed bug, Cimex lectularius L. behavior.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Narinderpal Singh

Full Text Available The role of olfactory cues such as carbon dioxide, pheromones, and kairomones in bed bug, Cimex lectularius L. behavior has been demonstrated. However, the role of vision and mechanoreception in bed bug behavior is poorly understood. We investigated bed bug vision by determining their responses to different colors, vertical objects, and their ability to detect colors and vertical objects under low and complete dark conditions. Results show black and red paper harborages are preferred compared to yellow, green, blue, and white harborages. A bed bug trapping device with a black or red exterior surface was significantly more attractive to bed bugs than that with a white exterior surface. Bed bugs exhibited strong orientation behavior toward vertical objects. The height (15 vs. 30 cm tall and color (brown vs. black of the vertical object had no significant effect on orientation behavior of bed bugs. Bed bugs could differentiate color and detect vertical objects at very low background light conditions, but not in complete darkness. Bed bug preference to different substrate textures (mechanoreception was also explored. Bed bugs preferred dyed tape compared to painted tape, textured painted plastic, and felt. These results revealed that substrate color, presence of vertical objects, and substrate texture affect host-seeking and harborage-searching behavior of bed bugs. Bed bugs may use a combination of vision, mechanoreception, and chemoreception to locate hosts and seek harborages.

A Tutoring System That Simulates the Highly Interactive Nature of Human Tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Katz, Sandra; Albacete, Patricia L.

2013-01-01

For some time, it has been clear that students who are tutored generally learn more than students who experience classroom instruction (e.g., Bloom, 1984). Much research has been devoted to identifying features of tutorial dialogue that can explain its effectiveness, so that these features can be simulated in natural-language tutoring systems. One…

Peer tutors as learning and teaching partners: a cumulative approach to building peer tutoring capacity in higher education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sherran Clarence

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Peer tutors in higher education are frequently given vital teaching and learning work to do, but the training or professional development and support opportunities they are offered vary, and more often than not peer tutors are under-supported. In order to create and sustain teaching and learning environments that are better able to facilitate students’ engagement with knowledge and learning, the role of peer tutors needs to be recognised differently, as that of learning and teaching partners to both lecturers and students. Tutors then need to be offered opportunities for more in-depth professional academic development in order to fully realise this role. This paper explores a tutor development programme within a South African writing centre that aimed at offering tutors such ongoing and cumulative opportunities for learning and growth using a balanced approach, which included scholarly research and practice-based training. Using narrative data tutors provided in reflective written reports, the paper explores the kinds of development in tutors’ thinking and action that are possible when training and development is theoretically informed, coherent, and oriented towards improving practice.

Kissing Bug (Triatoma spp.) Intrusion into Homes: Troublesome Bites and Domiciliation.

Science.gov (United States)

Klotz, Stephen A; Shirazi, F Mazda; Boesen, Keith; Beatty, Norman L; Dorn, Patricia L; Smith, Shannon; Schmidt, Justin O

2016-01-01

Kissing bugs (Triatoma spp.) frequently enter homes and bite human and pet occupants. Bites may lead to severe allergic reactions and, in some cases, death. Kissing bugs are also vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi, the cause of Chagas disease. In general, modern houses in the United States are not conducive to domiciliation of kissing bugs (bugs living out their entire life within the home with the presence of eggs, nymphs, adults, and exuviae). Construction features such as concrete foundations, solid walls and ceilings, window screens, tight thresholds for doors and windows, and other measures impede bug entry into homes, and air conditioning reduces the need for open doors and windows. Where Chagas disease is endemic in Mexico and Central and South America, homes often have thatch roofs, adobe walls, and open doors and windows. We investigated numerous instances of kissing bug intrusions into homes in Southern Arizona, California, and Louisiana and documented the reactions to kissing bug bites. Our work confirms the importance of modern home construction in limiting kissing bug intrusions. Older homes, especially those lacking modern screening, caulking, and weather stripping to reduce air leakage, may be subject to kissing bug intrusions and domiciliation. We describe a community in Southern Arizona where domiciliation of homes by Triatoma recurva is common. We also provide recent data regarding kissing bug bites and allergic reactions to the bites.

Early perception of stink bug damage in developing seeds of field-grown soybean induces chemical defences and reduces bug attack.

Science.gov (United States)

Giacometti, Romina; Barneto, Jesica; Barriga, Lucia G; Sardoy, Pedro M; Balestrasse, Karina; Andrade, Andrea M; Pagano, Eduardo A; Alemano, Sergio G; Zavala, Jorge A

2016-08-01

Southern green stink bugs (Nezara viridula L.) invade field-grown soybean crops, where they feed on developing seeds and inject phytotoxic saliva, which causes yield reduction. Although leaf responses to herbivory are well studied, no information is available about the regulation of defences in seeds. This study demonstrated that mitogen-activated protein kinases MPK3, MPK4 and MPK6 are expressed and activated in developing seeds of field-grown soybean and regulate a defensive response after stink bug damage. Although 10-20 min after stink bug feeding on seeds induced the expression of MPK3, MPK6 and MPK4, only MPK6 was phosphorylated after damage. Herbivory induced an early peak of jasmonic acid (JA) accumulation and ethylene (ET) emission after 3 h in developing seeds, whereas salicylic acid (SA) was also induced early, and at increasing levels up to 72 h after damage. Damaged seeds upregulated defensive genes typically modulated by JA/ET or SA, which in turn reduced the activity of digestive enzymes in the gut of stink bugs. Induced seeds were less preferred by stink bugs. This study shows that stink bug damage induces seed defences, which is perceived early by MPKs that may activate defence metabolic pathways in developing seeds of field-grown soybean. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

Print a Bed Bug Card - (Single Cards)

Science.gov (United States)

Two sets of business-card-sized lists of tips for recognizing bed bugs and the signs of an infestation, including a photo of bed bugs to assist identification. One card is for general use around home or office, the other for travelers.

Private Tutoring: Evidence from India

OpenAIRE

Azam, Mehtabul

2015-01-01

Drawing on the nationally representative "Participation and Expenditure in Education" surveys, we document the incidence and cost of private tutoring at different stages of schooling over the last two decades in India. As private tutoring involve two decisions: a) whether to take private tuition or not, and b) how much to spend on private tutoring conditional on positive decision in (a), we analyze the determinants of the two decisions separately using a Hurdle model. We find that private tut...

Merging the Forces of Asynchronous Tutoring and Synchronous Conferencing: A Qualitative Study of Arab ESL Academic Writers Using E-Tutoring

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Alqadoumi, Omar Mohamed

2012-01-01

Previous studies in the field of e-tutoring dealt either with asynchronous tutoring or synchronous conferencing as modes for providing e-tutoring services to English learners. This qualitative research study reports the experiences of Arab ESL tutees with both asynchronous tutoring and synchronous conferencing. It also reports the experiences of…

Investigating Language Tutor Social Inclusion Identities

Science.gov (United States)

Barkhuizen, Gary

2017-01-01

This article explores the identities of tutors working in one-to-one instructional arrangements, which entail a tutor and an adult English learner working together to meet the particular language learning needs and goals of the learner. The tutors in this study are matched with their partners through an organization in New Zealand which aims to…

PC Tutor. Bericht uber ein PC-gestutzes Tutorensystem = PC Tutor. Report on a Tutoring System with Personal Computer. ZIFF Papiere 75.

Science.gov (United States)

Fritsch, Helmut

A project was conducted to increase as well as to professionalize communication between tutors and learners in a West German university's distance education program by the use of personal computers. Two tutors worked on the systematic development of a PC-based correcting system. The goal, apart from developing general language skills in English,…

Finding error handling bugs in OpenSSL using Coccinelle

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lawall, Julia; Laurie, Ben; Hansen, René Rydhof

2010-01-01

OpenSSL is a library providing various functionalities relating to secure network communication.  Detecting and fixing bugs in OpenSSL code is thus essential, particularly when such bugs can lead to malicious attacks.  In previous work, we have proposed a methodology for finding API usage protocols...... in Linux kernel code using the program matching and transformation engine Coccinelle.  In this work, we report on our experience in applying this methodology to OpenSSL, focusing on API usage protocols related to error handling.  We have detected over 30 bugs in a recent OpenSSL snapshot, and in many cases...... it was possible to correct the bugs automatically.  Our patches correcting these bugs have been accepted by the OpenSSL developers.  This work furthermore confirms the applicability of our methodology to user-level code....

Computer Tutors Get Personal

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, David L.

2005-01-01

After decades of research in artificial intelligence (AI) and cognitive psychology, a number of companies have emerged that offer intelligent tutor system (ITS) soft ware to schools. These systems try to mimic the help that a human tutor would provide to an individual student, something nearly impossible for teachers to accomplish in the…

Does Private Tutoring Work? The Effectiveness of Private Tutoring: A Nonparametric Bounds Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Hof, Stefanie

2014-01-01

Private tutoring has become popular throughout the world. However, evidence for the effect of private tutoring on students' academic outcome is inconclusive; therefore, this paper presents an alternative framework: a nonparametric bounds method. The present examination uses, for the first time, a large representative data-set in a European setting…

Rules of engagement: developing the online tutor

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Lucy Golden

2012-08-01

Full Text Available This paper considers professional development in a context that is familiar and problematic to teaching teams in tertiary education everywhere, that of delivering online programmes with an ever-decreasing complement of staff. The Teaching Qualification Further Education (TQFE teaching team at University of Dundee confronted the reality of reduced staff numbers by centralising tutoring and support for programme participants. The new system involves standardising tutoring as far as possible through generic email, blog and microblog accounts, all badged “TQFE-Tutor” and staffed on a roster basis. Once the new “rules of engagement” via TQFE-Tutor were in place, it became clear that in addition to benefits in terms of student support, there were other unintended positive consequences: opportunities for informal professional development for staff and the promotion of effective team working. The experience of collective tutoring has facilitated collaboration on a range of innovations within online learning. This paper describes the evolution of the TQFE-Tutor innovation and reports upon a small scale study which was carried out to gather the views of the tutor team working with TQFE-Tutor. The authors conclude that the centralisation of communication and tutoring on the TQFE programme has been highly beneficial in terms of professional development for the team.

Twelve tips for successful e-tutoring using electronic portfolios.

Science.gov (United States)

Deketelaere, Ann; Degryse, Jan; De Munter, Agnes; De Leyn, Paul

2009-06-01

E-tutoring by means of a digital portfolio offers personal guidance in a context in which regular face-to-face contact between supervisor and student is difficult. However, implementing e-tutoring in practice is not always straightforward. This article investigates the conditions for successful e-tutoring of electronic portfolios. A combination of three methods is used: our own experience with e-tutoring, interviews with 14 tutors using an e-portfolio and the answers on questionnaires by 107 students. We present 12 tips to increase the chances of successful e-tutoring when using electronic portfolios. E-tutoring by means of electronic portfolios can be a feasible alternative in contexts in which face-to-face tutoring is difficult.

Efektivitas Model Pembelajaran Kooperatif Tipe Student Team Achievement Division (STAD yang Dimodifikasi dengan Tutor Sebaya ditinjau dari Kecerdasan Majemuk Siswa.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dwi Mei Heni

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The Effectiveness Model of Modified Student Team Achievement Division (STAD Type of Cooperative Learning with Peer tutoring Viewed from the Student’s Multiple Intelligences. This research was conducted to find out: Which learning model giving better student learning achievement, STAD or modified STAD with peer tutoring. The research population was all XI graders of Vocational School (SMK throughout Bojonegoro Regency in the school year of 2011/2012. The sampling used was stratified cluster random sampling and then chosen three schools namely SMKN 1 Bojonegoro, SMK Muhammadiyah 2 Sumberrejo, and SMK PGRI 3 Bojonegoro. Technique of analyzing data used was two-way anava 2x3 with different cell. In this research, it can be concluded that The student with the modified STAD type of cooperative learning with peer tutoring have better mathematics learning achievement than the students with STAD type of cooperative learning.   Keywords : Modified STAD with peer tutoring, Multiple Intelligences, Mathematics Learning Achievement

Investigating Microadaptation in One-to-One Human Tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Siler, Stephanie Ann; VanLehn, Kurt

2015-01-01

The authors investigated whether some advantages of tutoring over other instructional methods are due to microadaptation, or, tutors basing their actions on assessments of tutees they develop during tutoring. In a 2 × 2 between-subjects experiment, independent variables were shared experience (tutors either worked with the same or a different…

Bug City: House and Backyard Insects [Videotape].

Science.gov (United States)

1998

"Bug City" is a video series created to help children learn about insects and other small critters. All aspects of bug life are touched upon including body structure, food, habitat, life cycle, mating habits, camouflage, mutualism (symbiosis), adaptations, social behavior, and more. Each program features dramatic microscopic photography,…

Analysis of the Dynamics among Tutors in an After-School Tutoring Program in a Homeless Shelter for Families

Science.gov (United States)

MacGillivray, Laurie; Goode, Gretchen S.

2016-01-01

Researchers of after-school tutoring primarily focus on educational outcomes with little attention to the social dynamics of such programs. In our qualitative case study, we examined the nature of interactions among tutors in a tutoring program at a homeless shelter for families. Employing Bourdieu's concepts of "social capital" and…

Bed Bugs FAQs

Science.gov (United States)

... Europe. Bed bugs have been found in five-star hotels and resorts and their presence is not ... Health – Division of Parasitic Diseases Email Recommend Tweet YouTube Instagram Listen Watch RSS ABOUT About CDC Jobs ...

Reciprocal Tutoring: Design with Cognitive Load Sharing

Science.gov (United States)

Chou, Chih-Yueh; Chan, Tak-Wai

2016-01-01

"Reciprocal tutoring," as reported in "Exploring the design of computer supports for reciprocal tutoring" (Chan and Chou 1997), has extended the meaning and scope of "intelligent tutoring" originally implemented in stand alone computers. This research is a follow-up to our studies on a "learning companion…

Comparison of management strategies for squash bugs (Hemiptera: Coreidae) in watermelon.

Science.gov (United States)

Dogramaci, Mahmut; Shrefler, James W; Roberts, B Warren; Pair, Sam; Edelson, J V

2004-12-01

Two watermelon pest management practices, a squash trap crop and a standard recommendation using soil-applied carbofuran, were compared using large-scale field plots to assess trap crop suitability as a replacement for the standard in 2000, 2001, and 2002. In both systems, foliar insecticide applications were used to control squash bugs when populations exceeded threshold levels. During 2001 and 2002, a treatment of untreated watermelon was used. Early season adult insects, from seedling to fruit set, are most critical for watermelon. Significantly fewer early adult bugs were found on watermelon in the trap crop than in the standard recommended practice in 1 of 3 yr. In both years, significantly fewer adult squash bugs were found in watermelon in the trap crop than in untreated fields. The standard recommended practice significantly reduced adult squash bugs in watermelon compared with the untreated in 1 of 2 yr. There was no significant correlation of watermelon yield and squash bug density, indicating that squash bug densities were too low to impact yield. Although squash bugs were reduced significantly by the trap crop, marketable watermelon yields were lower in the squash trap crop than in untreated watermelon, suggesting that pest management treatments may interfere with crop productivity factors other than squash bug colonization. Results suggest that mid-season production squash bug should be managed by monitoring populations and using insecticides as needed rather than using at-plant treatment. Further research is needed to compare treatments during early-season production.

Effective Bug Finding in C Programs with Shape and Effect Abstractions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abal, Iago; Brabrand, Claus; Wasowski, Andrzej

2017-01-01

Software projects tend to suffer from conceptually simple resource manipulation bugs, such as accessing a de-allocated memory region, or acquiring a non-reentrant lock twice. Static code scanners are used extensively to remove these bugs from projects like the Linux kernel. Yet, when the manipula......Software projects tend to suffer from conceptually simple resource manipulation bugs, such as accessing a de-allocated memory region, or acquiring a non-reentrant lock twice. Static code scanners are used extensively to remove these bugs from projects like the Linux kernel. Yet, when...... the Linux kernel. Our results show that our tool is more effective at finding bugs than similar code-scanning tools. EBA analyzes the drivers/ directory of Linux (nine thousand files) in less than thirty minutes, and uncovers a handful previously unknown double-lock bugs in various drivers....

The odorant receptor co-receptor from the bed bug, Cimex lectularius L.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Immo A Hansen

Full Text Available Recently, the bed bug, Cimex lectularius L. has re-emerged as a serious and growing problem in many parts of the world. Presence of resistant bed bugs and the difficulty to eliminate them has renewed interest in alternative control tactics. Similar to other haematophagous arthropods, bed bugs rely on their olfactory system to detect semiochemicals in the environment. Previous studies have morphologically characterized olfactory organs of bed bugs' antenna and have physiologically evaluated the responses of olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs to host-derived chemicals. To date, odorant binding proteins (OBPs and odorant receptors (ORs associated with these olfaction processes have not been studied in bed bugs. Chemoreception in insects requires formation of heteromeric complexes of ORs and a universal OR coreceptor (Orco. Orco is the constant chain of every odorant receptor in insects and is critical for insect olfaction but does not directly bind to odorants. Orco agonists and antagonists have been suggested as high-value targets for the development of novel insect repellents. In this study, we have performed RNAseq of bed bug sensory organs and identified several odorant receptors as well as Orco. We characterized Orco expression and investigated the effect of chemicals targeting Orco on bed bug behavior and reproduction. We have identified partial cDNAs of six C. lectularius OBPs and 16 ORs. Full length bed bug Orco was cloned and sequenced. Orco is widely expressed in different parts of the bed bug including OR neurons and spermatozoa. Treatment of bed bugs with the agonist VUAA1 changed bed bug pheromone-induced aggregation behavior and inactivated spermatozoa. We have described and characterized for the first time OBPs, ORs and Orco in bed bugs. Given the importance of these molecules in chemoreception of this insect they are interesting targets for the development of novel insect behavior modifiers.

Between-group transmission dynamics of the swallow bug, Oeciacus vicarius.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Charles R; Brown, Mary Bomberger

2005-06-01

The parasitic cimicid swallow bug, Oeciacus vicarius, is the principal invertebrate vector for Buggy Creek virus (BCRV) and has also been associated with Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus. To help understand the spread of this vector, we experimentally measured the transmission of O. vicarius between groups (colonies) of its main host, the cliff swallow (Petrochelidonpyrrhonota), in the field. Transmission of bugs between colonies varied significantly with year, size of the colony, and week within the season. Bug immigration into sites tended to peak in mid-summer. Swallow nests in larger colonies had more consistent rates of bug introduction than did nests in small colonies, but within a colony a given nest's weekly immigrant-bug count varied widely across the season. Transmission of O. vicarius between host social groups follows broadly predictable seasonal patterns, but there is nevertheless temporal and spatial heterogeneity in bug transmission. By understanding how long-distance movement by this vector varies in time and space, we can better predict where and when BCRV epizootics may occur.

Infestation by pyrethroids resistant bed bugs in the suburb of Paris, France

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Durand R.

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Bed bugs are hematophagous insects responsible for a re-emerging and challenging indoor pest in many countries. Bed bugs infestations may have health consequences including nuisance biting, cutaneous and systemic reactions. This resurgence can probably be attributed to factors such as increased international travel and development of resistance against insecticides. Resistance against pyrethroids has been reported several times from the USA and rarely in Europe. In France, very few data on bed bugs are available. The present study aimed to assess the infestation by bed bugs of a complex of two high-rise apartment buildings in the suburb of Paris and to evaluate their susceptibility to pyrethroid insecticides. We inspected for bed bugs 192 out of 198 apartments units (97% and interviewed their residents. 76 (39.6% apartments were infested. Among the 97 residents living in infested apartments, 53 (54.6% reported bed bug bites. A total of 564 bed bugs were collected in the infested units. Bioassays showed that 54 out of 143 bed bugs were resistant to pyrethroids (37.8%; 95% confidence interval: 29.9-45.7%. DNA sequencing showed that all bed bugs tested (n = 124 had homozygous L925I kdr-like gene mutation. The level of pyrethroid resistance found indicates that this phenomenon was already established in the site and prompts the need to reevaluate the wide use of pyrethroids to control bed bugs.

Simulation-Based Cryosurgery Intelligent Tutoring System Prototype.

Science.gov (United States)

Sehrawat, Anjali; Keelan, Robert; Shimada, Kenji; Wilfong, Dona M; McCormick, James T; Rabin, Yoed

2016-04-01

As a part of an ongoing effort to develop computerized training tools for cryosurgery, the current study presents a proof of concept for a computerized tool for cryosurgery tutoring. The tutoring system lists geometrical constraints of cryoprobes placement, simulates cryoprobe insertion, displays a rendered shape of the prostate, enables distance measurements, simulates the corresponding thermal history, and evaluates the mismatch between the target region shape and a preselected planning isotherm. The quality of trainee planning is measured in comparison with a computer-generated planning, created for each case study by previously developed planning algorithms. The following two versions of the tutoring system have been tested in the current study: (1) an unguided version, where the trainee can practice cases in unstructured sessions and (2) an intelligent tutoring system, which forces the trainee to follow specific steps, believed by the authors to potentially shorten the learning curve. Although the tutoring level in this study aims only at geometrical constraints on cryoprobe placement and the resulting thermal histories, it creates a unique opportunity to gain insight into the process outside the operation room. Post-test results indicate that the intelligent tutoring system may be more beneficial than the nonintelligent tutoring system, but the proof of concept is demonstrated with either system. © The Author(s) 2015.

Tutoring Online: Increasing Effectiveness with Best Practices

Science.gov (United States)

Turrentine, Penny; MacDonald, Lucy

2006-01-01

Is tutoring online more than just email? Two yearlong studies explored tutoring online in two different modes. One, from Atlantic Community College in New Jersey, looked at asynchronous (not real time) tutoring online using a discussion board. The other, at Pima Community College in Arizona, used synchronous (real time) online software. The…

Automated Session-Quality Assessment for Human Tutoring Based on Expert Ratings of Tutoring Success

Science.gov (United States)

Nye, Benjamin D.; Morrison, Donald M.; Samei, Borhan

2015-01-01

Archived transcripts from tens of millions of online human tutoring sessions potentially contain important knowledge about how online tutors help, or fail to help, students learn. However, without ways of automatically analyzing these large corpora, any knowledge in this data will remain buried. One way to approach this issue is to train an…

Implementation of the e-Bug Project in Greece.

Science.gov (United States)

Gennimata, Dimitra; Merakou, Kyriakoula; Barbouni, Anastasia; Kremastinou, Jenny

2011-06-01

The e-Bug pack and web site educational material has been translated and adapted to the Greek language and educational background, and implemented throughout Greece as a supplementary educational resource in elementary and junior high schools. Elementary and junior high school teachers in Greece have actively participated in the development of the e-Bug educational resource and supported the implementation of all e-Bug activities. Dissemination to all key national stakeholders has been undertaken, and endorsement has been obtained from educational and medical associations, societies and institutions. Independent evaluation has been carried out, as part of dissertation thesis projects, for postgraduate studies. The e-Bug educational resource provides all the essentials for the dissemination of good health behaviours in hygiene, monitoring the spread of infection and the prudent use of antibiotics, to the youth of this country. Its contribution is expected to be evident in the next adult generation.

Bed Bug Myths

Science.gov (United States)

Learn the truth about bed bugs, such as how easy they are to see with the naked eye, their preferred habitat, whether they transmit diseases, their public health effects, and whether pesticides are the best way to deal with an infestation.

Intelligent Tutor

Science.gov (United States)

1990-01-01

NASA also seeks to advance American education by employing the technology utilization process to develop a computerized, artificial intelligence-based Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) to help high school and college physics students. The tutoring system is designed for use with the lecture and laboratory portions of a typical physics instructional program. Its importance lies in its ability to observe continually as a student develops problem solutions and to intervene when appropriate with assistance specifically directed at the student's difficulty and tailored to his skill level and learning style. ITS originated as a project of the Johnson Space Center (JSC). It is being developed by JSC's Software Technology Branch in cooperation with Dr. R. Bowen Loftin at the University of Houston-Downtown. Program is jointly sponsored by NASA and ACOT (Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow). Other organizations providing support include Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, the National Research Council, Pennzoil Products Company and the George R. Brown Foundation. The Physics I class of Clear Creek High School, League City, Texas are providing the classroom environment for test and evaluation of the system. The ITS is a spinoff product developed earlier to integrate artificial intelligence into training/tutoring systems for NASA astronauts flight controllers and engineers.

Tutoring Adolescents in Literacy: A Meta-Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Jun, Seung Won; Ramirez, Gloria; Cumming, Alister

2010-01-01

What does research reveal about tutoring adolescents in literacy? We conducted a meta-analysis, identifying 152 published studies, of which 12 met rigorous inclusion criteria. We analyzed the 12 studies for the effects of tutoring according to the type, focus, and amount of tutoring; the number, age, and language background of students; and the…

Authoring Model-Tracing Cognitive Tutors

Science.gov (United States)

Blessing, Stephen B.; Gilbert, Stephen B.; Ourada, Stephen; Ritter, Steven

2009-01-01

Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) that employ a model-tracing methodology have consistently shown their effectiveness. However, what evidently makes these tutors effective, the cognitive model embedded within them, has traditionally been difficult to create, requiring great expertise and time, both of which come at a cost. Furthermore, an…

Embedding Science Facts in Leisure Skill Instruction Conducted by Peer Tutors

Science.gov (United States)

Fetko, Erin E.; Collins, Belva C.; Hager, Karen D.; Spriggs, Amy D.

2013-01-01

This investigation evaluated the effectiveness of using peer tutors to teach a chained leisure skill (i.e., UNO card game) to three middle school students with disabilities using a simultaneous prompting procedure within a multiple probe design. The investigation also assessed whether the students with disabilities would acquire four unrelated…

Four bugs on a rectangle

KAUST Repository

Chapman, S. J.

2010-11-10

The idealized mathematical problem of four bugs in cyclic pursuit starting from a 2-by-1 rectangle is considered, and asymptotic formulas are derived to describe the motion. In contrast to the famous case of four bugs on a square, here the trajectories quickly freeze to essentially one dimension. After the first rotation about the centre point, the scale of the configuration has shrunk by a factor of 10427907250, and this number is then exponentiated four more times with each successive cycle. Relations to Knuth\\'s double-arrow notation and level-index arithmetic are discussed. This journal is © 2011 The Royal Society.

BUGS at work : a bicycle user group guide

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-07-01

This guide provides practical advice to cyclists on how start a Bicycle User Group (BUG) at their workplace. It offers tools to encourage employers to be proactive in improving facilities in support of cycle commuting. Several BUGs across Canada have worked towards getting better bicycle parking, lockers and shower facilities at their workplace. Other incentives include policies such as flexible work hours for cyclist commuters; casual dress on Friday; reimbursement for the subsidized cost of free parking provided by employers; and, use of a company car if needed for company business during the work day. The advantages to employers include: reduced health care costs because cyclists are physically fit; decreased absenteeism; increased productivity; reduced parking costs; lower company transportation bills; and, a greener corporate image. BUGs provide cycling information ranging from cycling maps to pamphlets and they raise cycle awareness. This guide includes cycling survey samples and examples of successful BUG activities across Canada. refs., tabs., figs.

Stupid Tutoring Systems, Intelligent Humans

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, Ryan S.

2016-01-01

The initial vision for intelligent tutoring systems involved powerful, multi-faceted systems that would leverage rich models of students and pedagogies to create complex learning interactions. But the intelligent tutoring systems used at scale today are much simpler. In this article, I present hypotheses on the factors underlying this development,…

A Peer Mentor Tutor Program in Physics

Science.gov (United States)

Nossal, S. M.; Jacob, A. T.; Buehlman, J. D.; Middlecamp, C. H.

2001-05-01

The Peer Mentor Tutor (PMT) program in the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Physics Department matches upper level undergraduate physics majors in small groups with students potentially at-risk for having academic trouble with their gateway introductory non-calculus physics course or for feeling isolated at the University. The program enhances students'learning and confidence by providing an emphasis on problem solving, a supportive environment for asking questions, and opportunities for acquiring missing math skills. The students assisted include, among others, returning adults, students of color,students with English as a second language, and students who have never taken physics in high school. The tutors acquire teaching and leadership experience with ongoing training throughout the year. The Physics PMT program is run in collaboration with a similar program in Chemistry. The peer model is also being applied to other science courses at the University of Wisconsin. We will describe the structure of the Physics PMT program and our current efforts to expand the program into a broader Physics Learning Center that may serve multiple purposes and courses.

Learning from a Computer Tutor with Natural Language Capabilities

Science.gov (United States)

Michael, Joel; Rovick, Allen; Glass, Michael; Zhou, Yujian; Evens, Martha

2003-01-01

CIRCSIM-Tutor is a computer tutor designed to carry out a natural language dialogue with a medical student. Its domain is the baroreceptor reflex, the part of the cardiovascular system that is responsible for maintaining a constant blood pressure. CIRCSIM-Tutor's interaction with students is modeled after the tutoring behavior of two experienced…

Engaging Students as Tutors, Trainers, and Leaders

Science.gov (United States)

Derrick, Deirdre

2015-01-01

While starting a tutoring program may seem like a daunting and time-consuming task, it does not have to be. The best way to approach the creation and development of a tutoring service is with a list of clear objectives. In this article, the author describes the process she used to create a tutoring program with her English as a foreign language…

The near-peer tutoring programme: embracing the 'doctors-to-teach' philosophy - a comparison of the effects of participation between the senior and junior near-peer tutors.

Science.gov (United States)

Liew, Siaw-Cheok; Sow, Chew-Fei; Sidhu, Jagmohni; Nadarajah, Vishna Devi

2015-01-01

Background While there is an increasing pool of literature documenting the benefits of near-peer tutoring programme, little is known about the benefits for junior and senior peer tutors. Knowledge of the peer tutors' perceived benefits at different levels of seniority will aid in the development of a near-peer tutoring programme that will better fulfil both curricula and personal aspirations of near-peer tutors. We, therefore, investigated the perceived benefits of participation in a near-peer tutoring programme for junior as well as senior near-peer tutors. Methods Pre- and post-participation questionnaires were distributed to near-peer tutors after their clinical skills teaching sessions with Phase I undergraduate medical students. The Peer Tutor Assessment Instrument questionnaires were distributed to the 1) students, and to the 2) near-peer tutors (junior and senior) after each teaching and learning session for self-evaluation. Results The senior near-peer tutors felt that their participation in the programme had enhanced their skills (p=0.03). As a whole, the near-peer tutors were more motivated (Pre 5.32±0.46; Post 5.47±0.50; p=0.210) to participate in future teaching sessions but did not expect that having teaching experiences would make teaching as their major career path in the future (Pre 4.63±1.07; Post 4.54±0.98; p=0.701). The senior near-peer tutors were evaluated significantly higher by the students (p=0.0001). Students' evaluations of near-peer tutors on the domain of critical analysis was higher than self-evaluations (p=0.003). Conclusions Generally, the near-peer tutors perceived that they have benefited most in their skills enhancement and these near-peer tutors were scored highly by the students. However, senior near-peer tutors do not perceive that the programme has a lasting impact on their choice of career path.

The near-peer tutoring programme: embracing the 'doctors-to-teach' philosophy--a comparison of the effects of participation between the senior and junior near-peer tutors.

Science.gov (United States)

Liew, Siaw-Cheok; Sow, Chew-Fei; Sidhu, Jagmohni; Nadarajah, Vishna Devi

2015-01-01

While there is an increasing pool of literature documenting the benefits of near-peer tutoring programme, little is known about the benefits for junior and senior peer tutors. Knowledge of the peer tutors' perceived benefits at different levels of seniority will aid in the development of a near-peer tutoring programme that will better fulfil both curricula and personal aspirations of near-peer tutors. We, therefore, investigated the perceived benefits of participation in a near-peer tutoring programme for junior as well as senior near-peer tutors. Pre- and post-participation questionnaires were distributed to near-peer tutors after their clinical skills teaching sessions with Phase I undergraduate medical students. The Peer Tutor Assessment Instrument questionnaires were distributed to the 1) students, and to the 2) near-peer tutors (junior and senior) after each teaching and learning session for self-evaluation. The senior near-peer tutors felt that their participation in the programme had enhanced their skills (p=0.03). As a whole, the near-peer tutors were more motivated (Pre 5.32±0.46; Post 5.47±0.50; p=0.210) to participate in future teaching sessions but did not expect that having teaching experiences would make teaching as their major career path in the future (Pre 4.63±1.07; Post 4.54±0.98; p=0.701). The senior near-peer tutors were evaluated significantly higher by the students (p=0.0001). Students' evaluations of near-peer tutors on the domain of critical analysis was higher than self-evaluations (p=0.003). Generally, the near-peer tutors perceived that they have benefited most in their skills enhancement and these near-peer tutors were scored highly by the students. However, senior near-peer tutors do not perceive that the programme has a lasting impact on their choice of career path.

Two approaches to physics tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Solomaniuck, Tania

One in two first-year students at science or biomedical faculties fail in basic subjects such as mathematics, chemistry or physics. Course-specific tutoring is one of the available means for improving their performance. In the present research, two tutoring models are developed. Both incorporate independent learning, but from different perspectives and priorities. A pragmatic tutoring approach. The first part of the thesis describes the search process for an optimal course-specific tutoring strategy for a standard first-year physics course in life sciences curricula. After a number of empirical research rounds, a pragmatic compromise emerged as the most suitable form of tutoring. The approach is characterised by: (1) priority to questions from students; (2) a high degree of interactivity with the tutor and among students; (3) due consideration to the number of questions to be dealt with and the depth in which they should be discussed. Most students participating in the tutoring sessions expressed their satisfaction and performed sufficiently well in their exams. However, there was still a problem: the students' insight into the course material was restricted to first-order processing of the syllabus. While this would be satisfactory in non-scientific study programmes, it is deemed insufficient in programmes where deeper insight is required in order that students be able to deal adequately with new conceptual questions or problems. In-depth tutoring. In science programmes, the core objective is for students to acquire in-depth knowledge. Therefore, science educators are designing and studying teaching methods that are geared not only to the acquisition of in-depth knowledge as such, but also to the motivation of students to take a more in-depth approach to learning. Some of the crucial notions in their research are: the extent to which the course content ties in with students' prior knowledge, problem-setting strategies and concept-context linking. 'In

The chemical volatiles (semiochemicals) produced by neo tropical stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moraes, Maria C.B.; Pareja, Martin; Laumann, Raul A.; Borges, Miguel [EMBRAPA Recursos Geneticos e Biotecnologia, Brasilia, DF (Brazil). Nucleo Tematico Controle Biologico

2008-09-15

In recent years the growing concern about environmental changes and how we are using the natural resources have triggered a search for natural products as alternatives to synthetic pesticides. The stink bugs produce a wide variety of chemical compounds (semiochemicals) that show potential to manage these insects. The stink bugs Chinavia impicticornis (Stal), C. ubica (Rolston), Dichelops melacanthus (Dallas), Euschistus heros (F.), Piezodorus guildinii (Westwood), Thyanta perditor (Westwood) and Tibraca limbativentris (Stal) had their blends of defensive compounds evaluated both qualitative and quantitatively. The main compounds identified on the glands of Brazilian stink bugs are: 2-alkenals, mainly the E isomer; saturated aliphatic hydrocarbons; and 4 oxo-(E)-2-alkenals. The first sex attractant determined from a stink bug was obtained from Nezara viridula L., and consists on a mix of two isomers cis - and trans bisabolene-epoxides. Later the soybean stink bug E. heros was also studied and its sex attractant was identified as three esters methyl: 2,6,10-trimethyl decanoate, methyl 2,6,10-trimethyl dodecanoate, and methyl E2, Z4-decadienoate. Recently, three new Brazilian sting bugs were studied and had their sex attractant elucidated. Males of T. perditor produce the ester, methyl 2E, 4Z, 6Z-decatrienoate. Whereas, the stink bug, P. guildinii has as sexual pheromone, the sesquiterpene beta-sesqui phellandrene, and the stink bug T. limbativentris produces as sex attractant the zingiberenol. In this review we discuss the advances obtained on the behaviour and identification of sex and defensive compound of stink bugs from Brazilian crops and the application of this knowledge to manage the stink bugs. (author)

The chemical volatiles (semiochemicals) produced by neo tropical stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moraes, Maria C.B.; Pareja, Martin; Laumann, Raul A.; Borges, Miguel

2008-01-01

In recent years the growing concern about environmental changes and how we are using the natural resources have triggered a search for natural products as alternatives to synthetic pesticides. The stink bugs produce a wide variety of chemical compounds (semiochemicals) that show potential to manage these insects. The stink bugs Chinavia impicticornis (Stal), C. ubica (Rolston), Dichelops melacanthus (Dallas), Euschistus heros (F.), Piezodorus guildinii (Westwood), Thyanta perditor (Westwood) and Tibraca limbativentris (Stal) had their blends of defensive compounds evaluated both qualitative and quantitatively. The main compounds identified on the glands of Brazilian stink bugs are: 2-alkenals, mainly the E isomer; saturated aliphatic hydrocarbons; and 4 oxo-(E)-2-alkenals. The first sex attractant determined from a stink bug was obtained from Nezara viridula L., and consists on a mix of two isomers cis - and trans bisabolene-epoxides. Later the soybean stink bug E. heros was also studied and its sex attractant was identified as three esters methyl: 2,6,10-trimethyl decanoate, methyl 2,6,10-trimethyl dodecanoate, and methyl E2, Z4-decadienoate. Recently, three new Brazilian sting bugs were studied and had their sex attractant elucidated. Males of T. perditor produce the ester, methyl 2E, 4Z, 6Z-decatrienoate. Whereas, the stink bug, P. guildinii has as sexual pheromone, the sesquiterpene beta-sesqui phellandrene, and the stink bug T. limbativentris produces as sex attractant the zingiberenol. In this review we discuss the advances obtained on the behaviour and identification of sex and defensive compound of stink bugs from Brazilian crops and the application of this knowledge to manage the stink bugs. (author)

Uncovering Bugs in Distributed Storage Systems during Testing (not in Production!)

OpenAIRE

Deligiannis, P; McCutchen, M; Thomson, P; Chen, S; Donaldson, AF; Erickson, J; Huang, C; Lal, A; Mudduluru, R; Qadeer, S; Schulte, W

2016-01-01

Testing distributed systems is challenging due to multiple sources of nondeterminism. Conventional testing techniques, such as unit, integration and stress testing, are ineffective in preventing serious but subtle bugs from reaching production. Formal techniques, such as TLA+, can only verify high-level specifications of systems at the level of logic-based models, and fall short of checking the actual executable code. In this paper, we present a new methodology for testing distributed systems...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... var c = 0; c Tips to prevent and treat bug bites Although most bug bites are harmless, some can spread dangerous diseases like Zika virus, dengue, Lyme disease, and malaria. Particularly if you’re ...

Automated Bug Assignment: Ensemble-based Machine Learning in Large Scale Industrial Contexts

OpenAIRE

Jonsson, Leif; Borg, Markus; Broman, David; Sandahl, Kristian; Eldh, Sigrid; Runeson, Per

2016-01-01

Bug report assignment is an important part of software maintenance. In particular, incorrect assignments of bug reports to development teams can be very expensive in large software development projects. Several studies propose automating bug assignment techniques using machine learning in open source software contexts, but no study exists for large-scale proprietary projects in industry. The goal of this study is to evaluate automated bug assignment techniques that are based on machine learni...

Modified bug-1 algorithm based strategy for obstacle avoidance in multi robot system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kandathil Jom J.

2018-01-01

Full Text Available One of the primary ability of an intelligent mobile robot system is obstacle avoidance. BUG algorithms are classic examples of the algorithms used for achieving obstacle avoidance. Unlike many other planning algorithms based on global knowledge, BUG algorithms assume only local knowledge of the environment and a global goal. Among the variations of the BUG algorithms that prevail, BUG-0, BUG-1 and BUG-2 are the more prominent versions. The exhaustive search algorithm present in BUG-1 makes it more reliable and safer for practical applications. Overall, this provides a more predictable and dependable performance. Hence, the essential focus in this paper is on implementing the BUG-1 algorithm across a group of robots to move them from a start location to a target location. The results are compared with the results from BUG-1 algorithm implemented on a single robot. The strategy developed in this work reduces the time involved in moving the robots from starting location to the target location. Further, the paper shows that the total distance covered by each robot in a multi robot-system is always lesser than or equal to that travelled by a single robot executing the same problem.

Bed Bug Information Clearinghouse

Science.gov (United States)

Its purpose is to help states, communities, and consumers in efforts to prevent and control bed bug infestations. Currently includes only reviewed material from federal/state/local government agencies, extension services, and universities.

Biochemical characterization of digestive amylase of wheat bug ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

STORAGESEVER

2009-08-04

Aug 4, 2009 ... ... Boyd et al., 2002). Wheat bug also feeds on different stage of developing grains. ... the grain during feeding, Wheat bug enzymes degrade gluten proteins and cause rapid relaxation of dough resulting in the production of .... A blank without substrate but with α-amylase extract and a control containing no ...

Digitales Peer-Tutoring - Explorative Analyse eines Peer-Video-Tutoring auf YouTube

OpenAIRE

Lebedynska, Viktoriya

2016-01-01

Als eine der erfolgreichsten und empirisch gut erforschten Methoden ist das Peer-Tutoring in den pädagogischen Kreisen äußerst beliebt. Neue organisatorische Anforderungen an Schule, wie die Einführung von G8 und die steigende Erwerbstätigkeit beider Elternteile, sowie neue didaktische Anforderungen, wie etwa Inklusion, eröffnen neue Möglichkeiten und Potentiale für den Einsatz des Peer-Tutoring. Die vorliegende Arbeit hat die Bearbeitung zweier Schwerpunkte zum Ziel. Zunächst wird das kla...

Zero bugs and program faster

CERN Document Server

Thompson, Kate

2015-01-01

A book about programming, improving skill, and avoiding mistakes. The author spent two years researching every bug avoidance technique she could find. This book contains the best of them. If you want to program faster, with fewer bugs, and write more secure code, buy this book! "This is the best book I have ever read." - Anonymous reviewer "Four score and seven years ago this book helped me debug my server code." -Abraham Lincoln "Would my Javascript have memory leaks without this book? Would fishes fly without water?" -Socrates "This book is the greatest victory since the Spanish Armada, and the best about programming." -Queen Elizabeth

[The good PBL tutor--to be or not to be: instructional films for tutors].

Science.gov (United States)

Skelin, Silvia; Huwendiek, Sören; Nikendei, Christoph; Dieter, Peter; Kirschfink, Michael; Bosse, Hans-Martin

2008-01-01

Many faculties worldwide apply the method of problem-based learning (PBL) in their curricula as a form of instruction by which students in small groups develop problem-solving strategies on the basis of a specific case. This approach fosters self-responsible and context-dependent learning, which aims at providing an improved anchoring of knowledge. For this reason, the previous decades have seen a distribution of the method to medical schools across the world. The role of the tutor assumes particular importance since, in contrast to the traditional university system, he or she serves as a facilitator who fosters and structures content-related and group-dynamic learning processes. In some cases, this requires an intervention by the tutor. The major challenge is to intervene at the right time and in an appropriate manner. This paper presents examples of difficult PBL situations using short film sequences to demonstrate and comments on potential approaches of the tutor in attempting to resolve the problem. Standard problem situations within a PBL tutorial were defined and produced in a film. A collection of seven frequent critical PBL situations are presented in short film sequences. Potential instruments of intervention are demonstrated in the videos and discussed. The film sequences may be downloaded in the supplementary of the electronic version of this article (www.sciencedirect.com). Within the framework of a tutor-training programme, the problematic situations and interventions presented in this article will help to sensitise tutors to potentially critical PBL tutorial situations and aid the development of individual resolution approaches.

WinBUGSio: A SAS Macro for the Remote Execution of WinBUGS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael K. Smith

2007-09-01

Full Text Available This is a macro which facilitates remote execution of WinBUGS from within SAS. The macro pre-processes data for WinBUGS, writes the WinBUGS batch-script, executes this script and reads in output statistics from the WinBUGS log-file back into SAS native format. The user specifies the input and output file names and directory path as well as the statistics to be monitored in WinBUGS. The code works best for a model that has already been set up and checked for convergence diagnostics within WinBUGS. An obvious extension of the use of this macro is for running simulations where the input and output files all have the same name but all that differs between simulation iterations is the input dataset. The functionality and syntax of the macro call are described in this paper and illustrated using a simple linear regression model.

HIGHER EDUCATION, ONLINE TUTORING AND THE TEACHING PROFESSION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luis Roberto de Camargo Ribeiro

2009-12-01

Full Text Available This article brings the analysis of a study—of a descriptive-analytical nature—about online tutoring, some of its characteristics and peculiarities as compared to face-to-face education. To this end it analyzes the results of an online questionnaire answered by 222 tutors pertaining to programs offered at Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar in partnership with Universidade Aberta do Brasil (UAB and Brazilian townships. The analysis focused on tutors’ characteristics (e.g., sex, education background and teaching experience, their work organization and activities, the division of labor (between tutors and teachers responsible for subjects, and their perceptions about the nature of tutoring and education at a distance (DE. This study is chiefly based on authors such as Lortie, Tardif, and Shulman—about face-to-face teaching—and Mill, Maggio, and Kenski—on distance education. The results of this study point to the predominance of female tutors, which resembles the makeup of the teaching body in face-to-face education at the lower levels, and indicate the respondents’ high levels of schooling and considerable face-to-face teaching experience. Despite the difficulties encountered by the tutors in this study, mainly due to their lack of experience in DE and varied technical problems, most of the tutors found it easy and pleasurable to work online. The dada also suggest that the tutors enjoyed comparative autonomy as regards actions associated with content transmission as well as actions related to (virtual classroom management. This autonomy may be the basis for the respondents’ perception that the online tutor, in the context under consideration, performs a genuine teaching function.

Developing e-Bug web games to teach microbiology.

Science.gov (United States)

Farrell, David; Kostkova, Patty; Lazareck, Lisa; Weerasinghe, Dasun; Weinberg, Julius; Lecky, Donna M; Adriaenssens, Niels; Koprivová Herotová, Tereza; Holt, Jette; Touboul, Pia; Merakou, Kyriakoula; Koncan, Raffaella; Olczak-Pienkowska, Anna; Avô, António Brito; Campos, José; McNulty, Cliodna A M

2011-06-01

As a complement to the e-Bug teaching pack, two e-Bug games were developed to provide content that aimed to entertain as well as to educate. A set of agreed learning outcomes (LOs) were provided by the scientific partners of the e-Bug Project and the games were developed using user-centred design techniques (the needs, wants and limitations of the potential game players were assessed at each stage of the design process). The e-Bug games were designed for two age groups: Junior (9-12 year olds); and Senior (13-15 year olds). A study using focus groups was done to gain an understanding as to the types of games enjoyed by the target users. According to the preliminary study, the Junior Game was developed as a platform game and the Senior Game was developed as a story-based detective game. The Junior Game consists of five levels, each associated with a set of LOs. Similarly, the Senior Game consists of four missions, each comprising five stages using problem-based learning techniques and LOs. In this paper, the process of development for each game is described in detail and an illustration is provided of how each game level or mission addresses the target LOs. Development of the games used feedback acquired from children in four schools across the UK (Glasgow, London and two in Gloucester). The children were selected according to their willingness to participate. European Partners of the e-Bug Project also provided further support, translation and requests for modifications. The knowledge gained of LOs and further evaluation of the games is continuing, and preliminary results are in press. The final versions of the games, translated into 11 European languages, are available online via www.e-bug.eu.

Bed Bug Epidemic: A Challenge to Public Health

Science.gov (United States)

Ratnapradipa, Dhitinut; Ritzel, Dale O.; Haramis, Linn D.; Bliss, Kadi R.

2011-01-01

In recent years, reported cases of bed bug infestations in the U.S. and throughout the world have escalated dramatically, posing a global public health problem. Although bed bugs are not known to transmit disease to humans, they pose both direct and indirect public health challenges in terms of health effects, treatment, cost, and resource…

The Effectiveness of Tutoring on Developmental English Grades

Science.gov (United States)

Vick, Nicholas; Robles-Piña, Rebecca A.; Martirosyan, Nara M.; Kite, Valerie

2015-01-01

Tutoring is an important form of academic support for developmental education students. A comparison study was conducted to investigate the benefits of tutoring on the final grades for developmental English students who participated in tutoring versus those students who did not. The final grades for three consecutive semesters were analyzed to…

International Students as Peer Tutors: Is It Lawful?

Science.gov (United States)

Leach-López, Maria A.

2010-01-01

Students enrolled in Principles of Accounting courses might require peer tutoring services. Accounting Departments (schools) can assist these students by maintaining a list of students offering tutoring services for a fee. The opportunity to be included in the list of tutors must be offered to all university students, both domestic and foreign.…

Catching the Bug: How Virtual Coaching Improves Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Megan

2014-01-01

In this article the author describes virtual coaching and why it is so effective. The following six points of virtual coaching are explained: (1) Also known as bug-in-ear coaching, virtual coaching is not new; (2) Virtual coaching can save money and time; (3) Bug-in-ear coaching increases the frequency of observations for novice teachers; (4) It…

Holistic curriculum development: tutoring as a support process ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The tutor's role in these involves different aspects of teaching and learning. In this article I explore the value of tutoring as a means of supporting the holistic curriculum development process. I reflect on the reason for introducing a system of tutoring for students in curriculum studies and the results of its implementation on ...

The Politics of Tutoring: Feminism within the Patriarchy.

Science.gov (United States)

Woolbright, Meg

1992-01-01

Examines a writing conference between a tutor and a student, both feminists. Discusses the conflicts expressed by the tutor and the student as they attempt to espouse feminist values within a patriarchal system. Concludes that feminism (and good tutoring) will have a chance only if students have options and the power to choose. (RS)

Posttreatment Feeding Affects Mortality of Bed Bugs (Hemiptera: Cimicidae) Exposed to Insecticides.

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Narinderpal; Wang, Changlu; Cooper, Richard

2016-02-01

Insecticide sprays and dusts are used for controlling bed bugs, Cimex lectularius L. In natural environments, bed bugs have daily access to hosts after they are exposed to insecticides. The established laboratory insecticide bioassay protocols do not provide feeding after insecticide treatments, which can result in inflated mortality compared with what would be encountered in the field. We evaluated the effect of posttreatment feeding on mortality of bed bugs treated with different insecticides. None of the insecticides tested had a significant effect on the amount of blood consumed and percent feeding. The effect of posttreatment feeding on bed bug mortality varied among different insecticides. Feeding significantly reduced mortality in bed bugs exposed to deltamethrin spray, an essential oil mixture (Bed Bug Fix) spray, and diatomaceous earth dust. Feeding increased the mean survival time for bed bugs treated with chlorfenapyr spray and a spray containing an essential oil mixture (Ecoraider), but did not affect the final mortality. First instars hatched from eggs treated with chlorfenapyr liquid spray had reduced feeding compared with nymphs hatched from nontreated eggs. Those nymphs hatched from eggs treated with chlorfenapyr liquid spray and successfully fed had reduced mortality and a higher mean survival time than those without feeding. We conclude that the availability of a bloodmeal after insecticide exposure has a significant effect on bed bug mortality. Protocols for insecticide efficacy testing should consider offering a bloodmeal to the treated bed bugs within 1 to 3 d after treatment. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Exploring the tutor-student interaction in a blended university course

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Krasnova Tatiana

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A meaningful tutor-student interaction requires a new insight into pedagogical principles and proper implementation of modern teaching strategies. This paper aims to contribute to the understanding of online tutoring in blended learning settings and the impact of the tutor-student interaction on the learning process. The article reports on the results of the study on students’ evaluation of the tutor’s role and the tutor-student interaction in a blended university course. The findings show that professional tutoring and the effective tutor-student interaction help students to improve their learning efficacy and to have a greater personal responsibility for their outcomes.

Development of Peer Tutoring Services to Support Osteopathic Medical Students' Academic Success.

Science.gov (United States)

Swindle, Nicholas; Wimsatt, Leslie

2015-11-01

Peer tutoring can benefit both tutors and tutored students, but information is lacking regarding establishing and measuring outcomes of such a program at new medical schools. To examine the outcomes of a pilot peer tutoring initiative and explore the implications for long-term program development. Fifty-one osteopathic medical students who participated in a pilot peer tutoring program during the 2013-2014 academic year were surveyed regarding satisfaction with the program. Course grade means for the tutors (all courses) and tutored students (specific courses) were analyzed before and after participating in the tutoring experience. Data analyses were performed using frequency distributions, t tests, and qualitative assessment of emergent themes. The survey had a 76% response rate (39 of 51 students). Both tutored students and tutors were satisfied with the tutoring program. Statistically significant changes in course grades for the tutored courses were noted at 3 to 4 and 8 to 9 months among the tutored students who were most at risk for failure (P=.001). Tutor course grades showed no significant changes for any of the courses in which they were enrolled (P=.445). Learning gains were realized by the students at greatest academic risk. Additional research is needed to evaluate long-term outcomes.

Bed Bugs and Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Bed bugs have long been a pest – feeding on blood, causing itchy bites and generally irritating their human hosts. They are successful hitchhikers, and can move from an infested site to furniture, bedding, baggage, boxes, and clothing.

The Effectiveness of Peer Tutoring Programs in Elementary Schools

OpenAIRE

Gee, Melinda

2004-01-01

The present review examined the effectiveness of three peer tutoring programs: cross-age peer tutoring, Classwide Peer Tutoring (CWPT), and Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS), for elementary students in the academic areas of math and reading. The research reviewed indicates students who participated in cross-age peer tutoring and CWPT had improved test scores on basic math facts as well as increased math scores on standardized assessments. Students also showed improvement in reading flu...

Essential oils as fumigants for bed bugs (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)

Science.gov (United States)

In Petri dish assays, fumigation of a pyrethroid-susceptible strain of bed bugs Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae) with various essential oils resulted in mortality that approached or equaled 100%, after 5 days. However, when bed bugs were exposed to the same essential oils in sealed, comme...

Effects of Starvation on Deltamethrin Tolerance in Bed Bugs, Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae

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Zachary C. DeVries

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Bed bugs, Cimex lectularius L., are a major pest in the urban environment. Their presence often results in physical, psychological, and financial distress of homeowners and apartment dwellers. Although many insecticide bioassays have been performed on this pest, little attention has been paid to bed bug feeding status, which is closely linked to metabolism, molting, and mass. Therefore, we evaluated the toxicity of topically applied deltamethrin on insecticide susceptible adult male bed bugs fed 2 d, 9 d, and 21 d prior to testing. When toxicity was evaluated on a “per-bug” basis, there was no difference between 2 d [LD50 = 0.498 (0.316 − 0.692 ng·bug−1] and 9 d [LD50 = 0.572 (0.436 − 0.724 ng·bug−1] starved bugs, while 21 d starved bugs had a significantly lower LD50 [0.221 (0.075 − 0.386 ng·bug−1]. When toxicity was evaluated in terms of body mass, 9 d starved bugs had the highest LD50 values [0.138 (0.102 − 0.176 ng·mg−1], followed by 2 d starved bugs [0.095 (0.060 − 0.134 ng·mg−1], and then 21 d starved bugs [0.058 (0.019–0.102 ng·mg−1]; the LD50 values of 2 d and 9 d starved bugs were significantly different from 21 d starved bugs. These results indicate that feeding status plays an important role in the toxicity of deltamethrin. In addition, the lack of differences between 2 d and 9 d starved bugs indicate that the blood meal itself has little impact on tolerance, but rather it is some physiological change following feeding that confers increased tolerance to bed bugs.

Comparison of Three Bed Bug Management Strategies in a Low-Income Apartment Building

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Changlu Wang

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Bed bug (Cimex lectularius L. infestations are currently controlled by a variety of non-chemical and chemical methods. There have been few studies on the comparative effectiveness of these control techniques. We evaluated three bed bug management strategies in an apartment building: (1 non-chemical methods only (n = 9; (2 insecticides only (n = 6; and (3 integrated pest management including both non-chemical methods and insecticides (n = 9. The apartments were one-bedroom units occupied by seniors or people with disabilities. Bed bug numbers in each apartment were determined by visual inspection and/or installing intercepting devices under bed and sofa legs. The median (min, max bed bug counts in the non-chemical methods only, insecticides only, and integrated pest management (IPM treatment were: 4 (1, 57, 19 (1, 250, and 14 (1, 219, respectively prior to the treatments. The apartments were retreated if found necessary during biweekly to monthly inspections. After 10 weeks, bed bugs were found to be eliminated from 67, 33, and 44% of the apartments in the three treatment groups, respectively. The final (after 10 weeks median (min, max bed bug counts in the non-chemical methods only, insecticides only, and IPM treatment were: 0 (0, 134, 11.5 (0, 58, and 1 (0, 38, respectively. There were no significant differences in the speed of bed bug count reduction or the final bed bug counts. Lack of resident cooperation partially contributed to the failure in eliminating bed bugs from some of the apartments. Results of this study suggest that non-chemical methods can effectively eliminate bed bugs in lightly infested apartments.

Prevalence of bed bug (Cimex lectularius in human settlement area of Bahnamir, Iran

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seyyed Farzad Motevalli Haghi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Objective: To survey the factors concerning with bed bugs epidemiology among human settlement area of Bahnamir, Iran in 2012-2013. Methods: Bed bugs were collected from 500 households which lived in eight villages in suburban areas. After random cluster classification, we checked their houses to collect information on presence of bed bugs. When bed bugs infestation revealed, they were preserved in properly labeled specimen containing 70% alcohol. Bugs were transferred to the Faculty of Health and identified by stereomicroscopy. A questionnaire was filled by the owners. The recorded data were coded and analyzed statistically using the Chi-square test. Results: In the study area, 14 from 500 families were infested by bed bugs which revealed almost 2.8% of infestation in that area. Five infested villages had shown 62.50% infestation. From the total of 256 caught bugs, 56.45%, 31.25%, 8.59%, and 3.91% was separated from bedroom, setting room, kitchen and other parts of the infested houses, respectively. Regarding to 256 trapped bugs in the bedroom, 33.2% were immature (nymph and 66.8% were mature. Conclusions: The results illustrated the role of education and guidance of the owners towards improving personal hygiene and public health with using insecticides to control by professional persons, not using secondhand instrument in the home and washing sheets and blankets and drying on suitable hot drier in order to reduce the infestation rate of bed bug among human settlement.

Ecosystem-Based Incorporation of Nectar-Producing Plants for Stink Bug Parasitoids

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Glynn Tillman

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Adult parasitoids of pest insects rely on floral resources for survival and reproduction, but can be food-deprived in intensively managed agricultural systems lacking these resources. Stink bugs are serious pests for crops in southwest Georgia. Provisioning nectar-producing plants for parasitoids of stink bugs potentially can enhance biocontrol of these pests. Knowledge of spatial and temporal availability and distribution of stink bugs in host plants is necessary for appropriate timing and placement of flowering plants in agroecosystems. Stink bugs move between closely associated host plants throughout the growing season in response to deteriorating suitability of their host plants. In peanut-cotton farmscapes, stink bugs develop in peanut, and subsequently the adults disperse into adjacent cotton. Parasitism of Nezara viridula (L. adults by Trichopoda pennipes (F. at the peanut-cotton interface was significantly higher in cotton with a strip of milkweed or buckwheat between the two crops than in cotton alone. Milkweed and buckwheat also provided nectar to a wide range of insect pollinators. Monarch butterflies fed on milkweed. When placed between peanut and cotton, a strip of soybean was an effective trap crop for cotton, reducing economic damage. Incorporation of buckwheat near soybean enhanced parasitism of Euschistus servus (Say eggs by Telenomus podisi Ashmead in cotton. In conclusion, nectar provision enhances biocontrol of stink bugs, acts together with other management tactics for stink bug control, and aids in conservation of natural enemies, insect pollinators, and the monarch butterfly.

WYSIWIB: A Declarative Approach to Finding Protocols and Bugs in Linux Code

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lawall, Julia Laetitia; Brunel, Julien Pierre Manuel; Hansen, Rene Rydhof

2008-01-01

the tools to be able to find specific kinds of bugs. In this paper, we propose a declarative approach based on a control-flow based program search engine. Our approach is WYSIWIB (What You See Is Where It Bugs), since the programmer is able to express specifications for protocol and bug finding using...

Histamine as an emergent indoor contaminant: Accumulation and persistence in bed bug infested homes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zachary C DeVries

Full Text Available Histamine is used in bronchial and dermal provocation, but it is rarely considered an environmental risk factor in allergic disease. Because bed bugs defecate large amounts of histamine as a component of their aggregation pheromone, we sought to determine if histamine accumulates in household dust in bed bug infested homes, and the effects of bed bug eradication with spatial heat on histamine levels in dust. We collected dust in homes and analyzed for histamine before, and up to three months after bed bug eradication. Histamine levels in bed bug infested homes were remarkably high (mean = 54.6±18.9 μg/100 mg of sieved household dust and significantly higher than in control homes not infested with bed bugs (mean < 2.5±1.9 μg/100 mg of sieved household dust. Heat treatments that eradicated the bed bug infestations failed to reduce histamine levels, even three months after treatment. We report a clear association between histamine levels in household dust and bed bug infestations. The high concentrations, persistence, and proximity to humans during sleep suggest that bed bug-produced histamine may represent an emergent contaminant and pose a serious health risk in the indoor environment.

5 Ways to Improve Tutoring Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Gordon, Edward E.

2009-01-01

Tutoring has become a familiar tool that schools use to reinforce classroom teaching and improve student achievement. That's especially been the case because of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and its provisions for supplemental education. Educators faced with developing or supporting tutoring services for students should consider five practical…

Peer Tutoring in Programming: Lessons Learned

Science.gov (United States)

Gerhardt, Jill; Olan, Michael

2010-01-01

This article describes our experience with peer tutoring in introductory programming courses. This tutoring concept was one of the integral support services out of five student services, which were part of a National Science Foundation Grant, designed to improve education, increase retention, improve professional development and employability, and…

How Does Bug-Handling Effort Differ Among Different Programming Languages?

OpenAIRE

Zhang, Jie; Li, Feng; Hao, Dan; Wang, Meng; Zhang, Lu

2018-01-01

Handling bugs is an essential part of software development. The impact of programming language on this task has long been a topic of much debate. For example, some people hold the view that bugs in Python are easy to handle because its code is easy to read and understand, while some others believe the absence of static typing in Python will lead to higher bug-handling effort. This paper presents the first large-scale study to investigate whether the ecosystems of different (categories of) pro...

Insects: Bugged Out!

Science.gov (United States)

Piehl, Kathy

2011-01-01

Insects really need no introduction. They have lived on earth much longer than humans and vastly outnumber people and all other animal species combined. People encounter them daily in their houses and yards. Yet, when children want to investigate insects, books can help them start their explorations. "Paleo Bugs" carries readers back to the time…

Tutors Can Improve Students' Reading Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Nelson-Royes, Andrea M.

2013-01-01

In this article the author suggests that tutoring has helped students to become more organized, self-assured, and proficient at identifying relationships between ideas. Successful tutoring requires: (1) at least one attentive adult who has the time to speak with students about academic matters, personal problems, and the importance of performing…

Effects of participation in a cross year peer tutoring programme in clinical examination skills on volunteer tutors' skills and attitudes towards teachers and teaching

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Zamora Javier

2007-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Development of students' teaching skills is increasingly recognised as an important component of UK undergraduate medical curricula and, in consequence, there is renewed interest in the potential benefits of cross-year peer tutoring. Whilst several studies have described the use of cross-year peer tutoring in undergraduate medical courses, its use in the clinical setting is less well reported, particularly the effects of peer tutoring on volunteer tutors' views of teachers and teaching. This study explored the effects of participation in a cross-year peer tutoring programme in clinical examination skills ('OSCE tutor' on volunteer tutors' own skills and on their attitudes towards teachers and teaching. Methods Volunteer tutors were final year MBChB students who took part in the programme as part of a Student Selected Component (SSC. Tutees were year 3 MBChB students preparing for their end of year 'OSCE' examination. Pre and post participation questionnaires, including both Likert-type and open response questions, were used. Paired data was compared using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. All tests were two-tailed with 5% significance level. Results Tutors reflected their cohort in terms of gender but were drawn from among the more academically successful final year students. Most had previous teaching experience. They were influenced to participate in 'OSCE tutor' by a desire to improve their own teaching and associated generic skills and by contextual factors relating to the organisation or previous experience of the OSCE tutor programme. Issues relating to longer term career aspirations were less important. After the event, tutors felt that participation had enhanced their skills in various areas, including practical teaching skills, confidence in speaking to groups and communication skills; and that as a result of taking part, they were now more likely to undertake further teacher training and to make teaching a major part

Undergraduate technical skills training guided by student tutors – Analysis of tutors' attitudes, tutees' acceptance and learning progress in an innovative teaching model

Science.gov (United States)

Weyrich, Peter; Schrauth, Markus; Kraus, Bernd; Habermehl, Daniel; Netzhammer, Nicolai; Zipfel, Stephan; Jünger, Jana; Riessen, Reimer; Nikendei, Christoph

2008-01-01

Background Skills labs provide a sheltered learning environment. As close supervision and individual feedback were proven to be important in ensuring effective skills training, we implemented a cross-year peer tutor system in our skills lab of internal medicine that allowed intense training sessions with small learning groups (3–4 students) taught by one student tutor. Methods The expectations, experiences and criticisms of peer tutors regarding the tutor system for undergraduate skills lab training were investigated in the context of a focus group. In addition, tutees' acceptance of this learning model and of their student tutors was evaluated by means of a pre/post web-based survey. Results 14 voluntary senior students were intensely prepared by consultants for their peer tutor activity. 127 students participated in the project, 66.9% of which responded to the web-based survey (23 topics with help of 6-point Likert scale + free comments). Acceptance was very high (5.69 ± 0.07, mean ± SEM), and self-confidence ratings increased significantly after the intervention for each of the trained skills (average 1.96 ± 0.08, all p skills training to be provided by faculty staff only. Focus group analyses with tutors revealed 18 different topics, including profit in personal knowledge and personal satisfaction through teaching activities. The ratio of 1:4 tutor/tutees was regarded to be very beneficial for effective feedback, and the personalized online evaluation by tutees to be a strong motivator and helpful for further improvements. The tutors ascribed great importance to the continuous availability of a contact doctor in case of uncertainties. Conclusion This study demonstrates that peer teaching in undergraduate technical clinical skills training is feasible and widely accepted among tutees, provided that the tutors receive sufficient training and supervision. PMID:18400106

Supporting Early Childhood Educators' Use of Embedded Communication Strategies by Providing Feedback via Bug-in-Ear Technology

Science.gov (United States)

Riggie, Jennifer

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between coaching provided with bug-in-ear technology, the frequency of the early childhood educators' use of targeted communication strategies and children's expressive communication. Four multiple-baseline single-case design experiments were completed to evaluate these relationships.…

A methodology for quantitatively managing the bug fixing process using Mahalanobis Taguchi system

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Boby John

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The controlling of bug fixing process during the system testing phase of software development life cycle is very important for fixing all the detected bugs within the scheduled time. The presence of open bugs often delays the release of the software or result in releasing the software with compromised functionalities. These can lead to customer dissatisfaction, cost overrun and eventually the loss of market share. In this paper, the authors propose a methodology to quantitatively manage the bug fixing process during system testing. The proposed methodology identifies the critical milestones in the system testing phase which differentiates the successful projects from the unsuccessful ones using Mahalanobis Taguchi system. Then a model is developed to predict whether a project is successful or not with the bug fix progress at critical milestones as control factors. Finally the model is used to control the bug fixing process. It is found that the performance of the proposed methodology using Mahalanobis Taguchi system is superior to the models developed using other multi-dimensional pattern recognition techniques. The proposed methodology also reduces the number of control points providing the managers with more options and flexibility to utilize the bug fixing resources across system testing phase. Moreover the methodology allows the mangers to carry out mid- course corrections to bring the bug fixing process back on track so that all the detected bugs can be fixed on time. The methodology is validated with eight new projects and the results are very encouraging.

Pheromones of milkweed bugs (Heteroptera: Lygaeidae) attract wayward plant bugs: Phytocoris mirid sex pheromone.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Qing-He; Aldrich, Jeffrey R

2003-08-01

The synthetic aggregation pheromone of the large milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus (Dallas) (Lygaeinae), also attracted males of the plant bug, Phytocoris difficilis Knight (Miridae). Field testing partial blends against the six-component blend comprising the Oncopeltus pheromone showed that cross-attraction of P. difficilis males was due to synergism between (E)-2-octenyl acetate and (E,E)-2,4-hexadienyl acetate. Hexyl acetate was abundant in the metathoracic scent gland (MSG) secretion of P. difficilis males, but because female P. difficilis could not initially be found in the field, further combinatorial tests were guided by prior research on the pheromones of two Phytocoris species in the western United States. The combination of hexyl, (E)-2-hexenyl, and (E)-2-octenyl acetates was as attractive to P. difficilis males as the milkweed bug pheromone, yet no milkweed bugs were drawn to this blend. Gas chromatographic (GC)-electroantennographic detection (EAD) and GC-mass spectrometric (MS) analyses of female P. difficilis MSGs determined that their secretion contained predominantly hexyl, (E)-2-hexenyl, and (E)-2-octenyl acetates (all strongly EAD-active)-the latter two compounds found only in trace amounts from males-plus five minor female-specific compounds, three of which were EAD-active. (E,E)-2,4-Hexadienyl acetate was not detected from P. difficilis females or males. The blend of the three major components, hexyl, (E)-2-hexenyl, and (E)-2-octenyl acetates (2:1.5:1 by volume), was as attractive as the blend of all six EAD-active compounds identified from females, indicating that this ternary blend constitutes the sex pheromone of P. difficilis. Hexyl acetate with (E)-2-octenyl acetate also attracted males of another species, P. breviusculus Reuter, but addition of (E)-2-hexenyl acetate and/or (E,E)-2,4-hexadienyl acetate inhibited attraction of P. breviusculus males. Attraction of P. difficilis males occurred mainly during the first half of scotophase. The

Computer-Game-Based Tutoring of Mathematics

Science.gov (United States)

Ke, Fengfeng

2013-01-01

This in-situ, descriptive case study examined the potential of implementing computer mathematics games as an anchor for tutoring of mathematics. Data were collected from middle school students at a rural pueblo school and an urban Hispanic-serving school, through in-field observation, content analysis of game-based tutoring-learning interactions,…

Impact of Paired Tutoring and Mentoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Bruce, Jennifer E.; Trammell, Jack

2003-01-01

Discusses a study that examines the effects of paired tutoring and mentoring on academic achievement of college freshmen in a probationary program. Results show that students with mentoring and tutoring services by the same person show greater academic gains as measured by compliance and academic achievement than do those students who were…

Characterization and Comparative Analysis of Olfactory Receptor Co-Receptor Orco Orthologs Among Five Mirid Bug Species

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Qi Wang

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The phytophagous mirid bugs of Apolygus lucorum, Lygus pratensis as well as three Adelphocoris spp., including Adelphocoris lineolatus, A. suturalis, and A. fasciaticollis are major pests of multiple agricultural crops in China, which have distinct geographical distribution and occurrence ranges. Like many insect species, these bugs heavily rely on olfactory cues to search preferred host plants, thereby investigation on functional co-evolution and divergence of olfactory genes seems to be necessary and is of great interest. In the odorant detection pathway, olfactory receptor co-receptor (Orco plays critical role in the perception of odors. In this study, we identified the full-length cDNA sequences encoding three putative Orcos (AsutOrco, AfasOrco, and LpraOrco in bug species of A. suturalis, A. fasciaticollis, and L. pratensis based on homology cloning method. Next, sequence alignment, membrane topology and gene structure analysis showed that these three Orco orthologs together with previously reported AlinOrco and AlucOrco shared high amino acid identities and similar topology structure, but had different gene structure especially at the length and insertion sites of introns. Furthermore, the evolutional estimation on the ratios of non-synonymous to synonymous (Ka/Ks revealed that Orco genes were under strong purifying selection, but the degrees of variation were significant different between genera. The results of quantitative real-time PCR experiments showed that these five Orco genes had a similar antennae-biased tissue expression pattern. Taking these data together, it is thought that Orco genes in the mirid species could share conserved olfaction roles but had different evolution rates. These findings would lay a foundation to further investigate the molecular mechanisms of evolutionary interactions between mirid bugs and their host plants, which might in turn contribute to the development of pest management strategy for mirid bugs.

Active Collaborative Learning through Remote Tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Gehret, Austin U.; Elliot, Lisa B.; MacDonald, Jonathan H. C.

2017-01-01

An exploratory case study approach was used to describe remote tutoring in biochemistry and general chemistry with students who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH). Data collected for analysis were based on the observations of the participant tutor. The research questions guiding this study included (1) How is active learning accomplished in…

Plug-In Tutor Agents: Still Pluggin'

Science.gov (United States)

Ritter, Steven

2016-01-01

"An Architecture for Plug-in Tutor Agents" (Ritter and Koedinger 1996) proposed a software architecture designed around the idea that tutors could be built as plug-ins for existing software applications. Looking back on the paper now, we can see that certain assumptions about the future of software architecture did not come to be, making…

Observing tutorial dialogues collaboratively: insights about human tutoring effectiveness from vicarious learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Chi, Michelene T H; Roy, Marguerite; Hausmann, Robert G M

2008-03-01

The goals of this study are to evaluate a relatively novel learning environment, as well as to seek greater understanding of why human tutoring is so effective. This alternative learning environment consists of pairs of students collaboratively observing a videotape of another student being tutored. Comparing this collaboratively observing environment to four other instructional methods-one-on-one human tutoring, observing tutoring individually, collaborating without observing, and studying alone-the results showed that students learned to solve physics problems just as effectively from observing tutoring collaboratively as the tutees who were being tutored individually. We explain the effectiveness of this learning environment by postulating that such a situation encourages learners to become active and constructive observers through interactions with a peer. In essence, collaboratively observing combines the benefit of tutoring with the benefit of collaborating. The learning outcomes of the tutees and the collaborative observers, along with the tutoring dialogues, were used to further evaluate three hypotheses explaining why human tutoring is an effective learning method. Detailed analyses of the protocols at several grain sizes suggest that tutoring is effective when tutees are independently or jointly constructing knowledge: with the tutor, but not when the tutor independently conveys knowledge. 2008 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Histamine as an emergent indoor contaminant: Accumulation and persistence in bed bug infested homes.

Science.gov (United States)

DeVries, Zachary C; Santangelo, Richard G; Barbarin, Alexis M; Schal, Coby

2018-01-01

Histamine is used in bronchial and dermal provocation, but it is rarely considered an environmental risk factor in allergic disease. Because bed bugs defecate large amounts of histamine as a component of their aggregation pheromone, we sought to determine if histamine accumulates in household dust in bed bug infested homes, and the effects of bed bug eradication with spatial heat on histamine levels in dust. We collected dust in homes and analyzed for histamine before, and up to three months after bed bug eradication. Histamine levels in bed bug infested homes were remarkably high (mean = 54.6±18.9 μg/100 mg of sieved household dust) and significantly higher than in control homes not infested with bed bugs (mean emergent contaminant and pose a serious health risk in the indoor environment.

The near-peer tutoring programme: embracing the ‘doctors-to-teach’ philosophy – a comparison of the effects of participation between the senior and junior near-peer tutors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Siaw-Cheok Liew

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Background: While there is an increasing pool of literature documenting the benefits of near-peer tutoring programme, little is known about the benefits for junior and senior peer tutors. Knowledge of the peer tutors’ perceived benefits at different levels of seniority will aid in the development of a near-peer tutoring programme that will better fulfil both curricula and personal aspirations of near-peer tutors. We, therefore, investigated the perceived benefits of participation in a near-peer tutoring programme for junior as well as senior near-peer tutors. Methods: Pre- and post-participation questionnaires were distributed to near-peer tutors after their clinical skills teaching sessions with Phase I undergraduate medical students. The Peer Tutor Assessment Instrument questionnaires were distributed to the 1 students, and to the 2 near-peer tutors (junior and senior after each teaching and learning session for self-evaluation. Results: The senior near-peer tutors felt that their participation in the programme had enhanced their skills (p=0.03. As a whole, the near-peer tutors were more motivated (Pre 5.32±0.46; Post 5.47±0.50; p=0.210 to participate in future teaching sessions but did not expect that having teaching experiences would make teaching as their major career path in the future (Pre 4.63±1.07; Post 4.54±0.98; p=0.701. The senior near-peer tutors were evaluated significantly higher by the students (p=0.0001. Students’ evaluations of near-peer tutors on the domain of critical analysis was higher than self-evaluations (p=0.003. Conclusions: Generally, the near-peer tutors perceived that they have benefited most in their skills enhancement and these near-peer tutors were scored highly by the students. However, senior near-peer tutors do not perceive that the programme has a lasting impact on their choice of career path.

The near-peer tutoring programme: embracing the ‘doctors-to-teach’ philosophy – a comparison of the effects of participation between the senior and junior near-peer tutors

Science.gov (United States)

Liew, Siaw-Cheok; Sow, Chew-Fei; Sidhu, Jagmohni; Nadarajah, Vishna Devi

2015-01-01

Background While there is an increasing pool of literature documenting the benefits of near-peer tutoring programme, little is known about the benefits for junior and senior peer tutors. Knowledge of the peer tutors’ perceived benefits at different levels of seniority will aid in the development of a near-peer tutoring programme that will better fulfil both curricula and personal aspirations of near-peer tutors. We, therefore, investigated the perceived benefits of participation in a near-peer tutoring programme for junior as well as senior near-peer tutors. Methods Pre- and post-participation questionnaires were distributed to near-peer tutors after their clinical skills teaching sessions with Phase I undergraduate medical students. The Peer Tutor Assessment Instrument questionnaires were distributed to the 1) students, and to the 2) near-peer tutors (junior and senior) after each teaching and learning session for self-evaluation. Results The senior near-peer tutors felt that their participation in the programme had enhanced their skills (p=0.03). As a whole, the near-peer tutors were more motivated (Pre 5.32±0.46; Post 5.47±0.50; p=0.210) to participate in future teaching sessions but did not expect that having teaching experiences would make teaching as their major career path in the future (Pre 4.63±1.07; Post 4.54±0.98; p=0.701). The senior near-peer tutors were evaluated significantly higher by the students (p=0.0001). Students’ evaluations of near-peer tutors on the domain of critical analysis was higher than self-evaluations (p=0.003). Conclusions Generally, the near-peer tutors perceived that they have benefited most in their skills enhancement and these near-peer tutors were scored highly by the students. However, senior near-peer tutors do not perceive that the programme has a lasting impact on their choice of career path. PMID:26356229

Integrating Hypermedia Objects In An Intelligent Tutoring System

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Emilia PECHEANU

2001-12-01

Full Text Available The paper describes the internal architecture of an Intelligent Tutoring System, CS-Tutor. The architectural design of the tutorial system was developed in a collaborative work at the Department of Computer Science of the University of Galati and the Department of Applied Informatics of the Faculty of Computer Science of Iasi. Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS are software packages which use the Artificial Intelligence techniques to aid in learning of some subject or skill. In recent years, Hypermedia has been gained the interest of many researchers working in the teaching field of study. The CS-Tutor internal architecture is based upon integrating Hypermedia Objects in an Intelligent Knowledge-Based frame.

Bridge: Intelligent Tutoring with Intermediate Representations

Science.gov (United States)

1988-05-01

Research and Development Center and Psychology Department University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA. 15260 The Artificial Intelligence and Psychology...problem never introduces more than one unfamiliar plan. Inteligent Tutoring With Intermediate Representations - Bonar and Cunniigbam 4 You must have a... Inteligent Tutoring With ntermediate Representations - Bonar and Cunningham 7 The requirements are specified at four differcnt levels, corresponding to

Student Perceptions of Online Tutoring Videos

Science.gov (United States)

Sligar, Steven R.; Pelletier, Christopher D.; Bonner, Heidi Stone; Coghill, Elizabeth; Guberman, Daniel; Zeng, Xiaoming; Newman, Joyce J.; Muller, Dorothy; Dennis, Allen

2017-01-01

Online tutoring is made possible by using videos to replace or supplement face to face services. The purpose of this research was to examine student reactions to the use of lecture capture technology in a university tutoring setting and to assess student knowledge of some features of Tegrity lecture capture software. A survey was administered to…

FUDAOWANG: A Web-Based Intelligent Tutoring System Implementing Advanced Education Concepts

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Wei; Zhao, Ke; Li, Yatao; Yi, Zhenzhen

2012-01-01

Determining how to provide good tutoring functions is an important research direction of intelligent tutoring systems. In this study, the authors develop an intelligent tutoring system with good tutoring functions, called "FUDAOWANG." The research domain that FUDAOWANG treats is junior middle school mathematics, which belongs to the objective…

Aggregation and Association of NDVI, Boll Injury, and Stink Bugs in North Carolina Cotton.

Science.gov (United States)

Reisig, Dominic D; Reay-Jones, F P F; Meijer, A D

2015-01-01

Sampling of herbivorous stink bugs in southeastern U.S. cotton remains problematic. Remote sensing was explored to improve sampling of these pests and associated boll injury. Two adjacent 14.5-ha cotton fields were grid sampled in 2011 and 2012 by collecting stink bug adults and bolls every week during the third, fourth, and fifth weeks of bloom. Satellite remote sensing data were collected during the third week of bloom during both years, and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) values were calculated. Stink bugs were spatially aggregated on the third week of bloom in 2011. Boll injury from stink bugs was spatially aggregated during the fourth week of bloom in 2012. The NDVI values were aggregated during both years. There was a positive association and correlation between stink bug numbers and NDVI values, as well as injured bolls and NDVI values, during the third week of bloom in 2011. During the third week of bloom in 2012, NDVI values were negatively correlated with stink bug numbers. During the fourth week of bloom in 2011, stink bug numbers and boll injury were both positively associated and correlated with NDVI values. During the fourth week of bloom in 2012, stink bugs were negatively correlated with NDVI values, and boll injury was negatively associated and correlated with NDVI values. This study suggests the potential of remote sensing as a tool to assist with sampling stink bugs in cotton, although more research is needed using NDVI and other plant measurements to predict stink bug injury. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Entomological Society of America.

Studies towards the sex pheromone of the green capsid bug

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Drijfhout, F.P.

2001-01-01

The green capsid bug, Lygocoris pabulinus (L.) (Heteroptera: Miridae) is a serious pest in fruit orchards, which is difficult to control. Because it is difficult to determine the actual population density, fruit growers apply insecticides against the green capsid bug on

Difficult incidents and tutor interventions in problem-based learning tutorials.

Science.gov (United States)

Kindler, Pawel; Grant, Christopher; Kulla, Steven; Poole, Gary; Godolphin, William

2009-09-01

Tutors report difficult incidents and distressing conflicts that adversely affect learning in their problem-based learning (PBL) groups. Faculty development (training) and peer support should help them to manage this. Yet our understanding of these problems and how to deal with them often seems inadequate to help tutors. The aim of this study was to categorise difficult incidents and the interventions that skilled tutors used in response, and to determine the effectiveness of those responses. Thirty experienced and highly rated tutors in our Year 1 and 2 medical curriculum took part in semi-structured interviews to: identify and describe difficult incidents; describe how they responded, and assess the success of each response. Recorded and transcribed data were analysed thematically to develop typologies of difficult incidents and interventions and compare reported success or failure. The 94 reported difficult incidents belonged to the broad categories 'individual student' or 'group dynamics'. Tutors described 142 interventions in response to these difficult incidents, categorised as: (i) tutor intervenes during tutorial; (ii) tutor gives feedback outside tutorial, or (iii) student or group intervenes. Incidents in the 'individual student' category were addressed relatively unsuccessfully (effective 75% of the time) by response (iii). None of the interventions worked well when used in response to problems related to 'group dynamics'. Overall, 59% of the difficult incidents were dealt with successfully. Dysfunctional PBL groups can be highly challenging, even for experienced and skilled tutors. Within-tutorial feedback, the treatment that tutors are most frequently advised to apply, was often not effective. Our study suggests that the collective responsibility of the group, rather than of the tutor, to deal with these difficulties should be emphasised.

WYSIWYB: A Declarative Approach to Finding API Protocols and Bugs in Linux Code

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lawall, Julia; Lawall, Julia; Palix, Nicolas

2009-01-01

the tools to be able to find specific kinds of bugs. In this paper, we propose a declarative approach based on a control-flow based program search engine. Our approach is WYSIWIB (What You See Is Where It Bugs), since the programmer is able to express specifications for protocol and bug finding using...

WYSIWIB: A Declarative Approach to Finding API Protocols and Bugs in Linux Code

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lawall, Julia; Brunel, Julien Pierre Manuel; Palix, Nicolas Jean-Michel

2009-01-01

the tools on specific kinds of bugs and to relate the results to patterns in the source code. We propose a declarative approach to bug finding in Linux OS code using a control-flow based program search engine. Our approach is WYSIWIB (What You See Is Where It Bugs), since the programmer expresses...

Traveler's Health: Avoid Bug Bites

Science.gov (United States)

... Safety Road Safety - 8 Steps MERS Health Advisory poster MERS Pictogram CDC Guide for Healthy Travel Website ... other accommodations that are air conditioned or have good window and door screens so bugs can’t ...

Getting Rid of Bed Bugs

Science.gov (United States)

... Directory Planning, Budget and Results Jobs and Internships Headquarters Offices Regional Offices Labs and Research Centers Bed ... to be careful in how you select a company. Related Information Collaborative Strategy on Bed Bugs - highlights ...

EPA-Registered Bed Bug Products

Science.gov (United States)

... rest or hide in hampers, bed frames, even furniture); Failing to treat adjacent areas where bed bugs ... to work (some pesticides, such as desiccators or growth regulators, may be very effective but take some ...

PENERAPAN MODEL PEMBELAJARAN TUTOR SEBAYA PADA MATA PELAJARAN SOSIOLOGI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ningrum Pusporini Anggorowati

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui pelaksanaannya model pembelajaran tutor sebaya (peer teaching di SMAN I Brebes. Subjek dalam penelitian ini adalah guru sosiologi kelas XI IPS 1 dan siswa kelas XI IPS 1. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan peer teaching memerlukan persiapan yang matang, dan setiap tahap pelaksanaan hendaknya dievaluasi untuk mendapatkan hasil yang baik. Faktor pendukung dalam pelaksanaan model pembelajaran tutor sebaya antara lain yaitu adanya interaksi antara guru dengan siswa, minat belajar siswa cukup tinggi, guru dan siswa lebih akrab dalam kegiatan pembelajaran, keterlibatan tutor sebaya dalam kelompok belajar membuat suasana pembelajaran lebih menarik, sedangkan faktor penghambatnya antara lain yaitu kurangnya persiapan dari para tutor, sarana dan prasarana kurang memadai, kegiatan pembelajaran kurang kondusif, dan sumber belajar kurang memadai. The objective of this study is to examine the implementation of peer tutoring learning model (peer teaching in SMAN I Brebes. Subjects in this study were teachers sociology class XI IPS 1 and class XI IPS 1. Results show that the implementation of peer teaching requires preparation, and each stage of the implementation should be evaluated to obtain good results. Factors supporting the implementation of peer tutoring learning model, among others, the interaction between teachers and students, and also student interest is high; teachers and students are more familiar in learning activities, and peer tutor involvement in the study group to make the learning environment more attractive. The inhibiting factor of peer teaching strategy include among others the lack of preparation of the tutors, inadequate infrastructure, lack of conducive learning activities, and learning resources are inadequate.

Effectiveness of Intelligent Tutoring Systems: A Meta Analytic Review

Science.gov (United States)

2017-02-01

United States, 2 = other) Publication year (1 = up to 2000, 2 = 2001–2005, 3 = 2006 onward) Grade level (1 = K–12, 2 = postsecondary) Subject (1 = math ...grade levels , (d) the subject taught is math , (e) a multiple-choice test is used to measure outcomes, and (f) Cognitive Tutor is the ITS used in the...conventional levels , or from the 50th to the 75th percentile. However, the amount of improvement found in an evaluation depended to a great extent on

Could Intelligent Tutors Anticipate Successfully User Reactions?

Science.gov (United States)

Kalisz, Eugenia; Florea, Adina Magda

2006-06-01

Emotions have been shown to have an important impact on several human processes such as decision-making, planning, cognition, and learning. In an e-learning system, an artificial tutor capable of effectively understanding and anticipating the student emotions during learning will have a significantly enhanced role. The paper presents a model of an artificial tutor endowed with synthesized emotions according to the BDE model, previously developed by the authors. It also analyzes possible student reactions while interacting with the learning material and the way the artificial tutor could anticipate and should respond to these reactions, with adequate actions.

Cases of bed bug (Cimex lectularius infestations in Northwest Italy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Federica Giorda

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius have been a common problem for humans for at least 3,500 years and in Europe their presence was endemic until the end of World War II, when infestations began to decrease. However, since the beginning of the 21st century new cases of infestations have been reported in developed countries. Many theories have been put forward to explain this change of direction, but none has been scientifically proven. The aim of this study is to provide some reports of bed bug infestations in Northern Italy (Liguria, Piedmont and Aosta valley regions and a brief summary about their identification, clinical significance, bioecology and control. From 2008 to date, 17 bed bug infestations were identified in Northwest Italy. Knowledge about the presence and distribution of bed bugs in Italy is scanty, prior to this work only 2 studies reported the comeback of these arthropods in the Italian territory; further investigations would be necessary to better understand the current situation.

An automated approach for finding variable-constant pairing bugs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lawall, Julia; Lo, David

2010-01-01

program-analysis and data-mining based approach to identify the uses of named constants and to identify anomalies in these uses.  We have applied our approach to a recent version of the Linux kernel and have found a number of bugs affecting both correctness and software maintenance.  Many of these bugs...... have been validated by the Linux developers....

Improvement on the accuracy of beam bugs in linear induction accelerator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xie Yutong; Dai Zhiyong; Han Qing

2002-01-01

In linear induction accelerator the resistive wall monitors known as 'beam bugs' have been used as essential diagnostics of beam current and location. The author presents a new method that can improve the accuracy of these beam bugs used for beam position measurements. With a fine beam simulation set, this method locates the beam position with an accuracy of 0.02 mm and thus can scale the beam bugs very well. Experiment results prove that the precision of beam position measurements can reach submillimeter degree

Exploring the tutor-student interaction in a blended university course

OpenAIRE

Krasnova, Tatiana Ivanovna; Popova, Anna

2016-01-01

A meaningful tutor-student interaction requires a new insight into pedagogical principles and proper implementation of modern teaching strategies. This paper aims to contribute to the understanding of online tutoring in blended learning settings and the impact of the tutor-student interaction on the learning process. The article reports on the results of the study on students’ evaluation of the tutor’s role and the tutor-student interaction in a blended university course. The findings show th...

Note-Taking within MetaTutor: Interactions between an Intelligent Tutoring System and Prior Knowledge on Note-Taking and Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Trevors, Gregory; Duffy, Melissa; Azevedo, Roger

2014-01-01

Hypermedia learning environments (HLE) unevenly present new challenges and opportunities to learning processes and outcomes depending on learner characteristics and instructional supports. In this experimental study, we examined how one such HLE--MetaTutor, an intelligent, multi-agent tutoring system designed to scaffold cognitive and…

Peer tutoring programs in health professions schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Santee, Jennifer; Garavalia, Linda

2006-06-15

Peer tutoring programs may be one method of maintaining quality of pharmacy education in the face of growing student enrollment and a small faculty body. A critical review of the literature was performed to ascertain whether peer tutoring programs improve or maintain the academic performance of health care professional students. Various electronic databases and abstracts from past American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy's annual meetings were searched to identify pertinent research. Only those articles with quantitative data, an experimental design, and comparative statistical analysis were included for review. Most studies found that peer tutoring had a positive impact on academic performance. These results may not be readily generalizable as there were numerous methodological flaws and limited descriptions of the programs and participants. Studies with better designs and more detail are needed to answer definitively whether peer tutoring is of benefit. Details of what resources were required should be included in the study to allow the reader to determine the feasibility of the intervention.

The impact of the invasive brown marmorated stink bug in North America and Europe: history, biology, ecology, and management

Science.gov (United States)

Brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB), Halyomorpha halys (Stål), is an invasive Pentatomidae introduced to the USA, Canada, and multiple European countries. In 2010, BMSB populations in the mid-Atlantic region USA reached outbreak levels, and subsequent feeding resulted in severe damage to tree fruit a...

Development and Validation of the Motivation for Tutoring Questionnaire in Problem-Based Learning Programs

OpenAIRE

Kassab, Salah Eldin; Hassan, Nahla; El-Araby, Shimaa; Salem, Abdel Halim; Alrebish, Saleh Ali; Al-Amro, Ahmed S.; Al-Shobaili, Hani A.; Hamdy, Hossam

2017-01-01

Purpose: There are no published instruments, which measure tutor motivation for conducting small group tutorials in problem-based learning programs. Therefore, we aimed to develop a motivation for tutoring questionnaire in problem-based learning (MTQ-PBL) and evaluate its construct validity. Methods: The questionnaire included 28 items representing four constructs: tutoring self-efficacy (15 items), tutoring interest (6 items), tutoring value (4 items), and tutoring effort (3 items). Tutor...

Designing and Evaluating Tutoring Feedback Strategies for Digital Learning Environments on the Basis of the Interactive Tutoring Feedback Model

Science.gov (United States)

Narciss, Susanne

2013-01-01

This paper describes the interactive tutoring feedback model (ITF-model; Narciss, 2006; 2008), and how it can be applied to the design and evaluation of feedback strategies for digital learning environments. The ITF-model conceptualizes formative tutoring feedback as a multidimensional instructional activity that aims at contributing to the…

Implementing CBM: SQL-Tutor after Fifteen Years

Science.gov (United States)

Mitrovic, Antonija; Ohlsson, Stellan

2016-01-01

SQL-Tutor is the first constraint-based tutor. The initial conference papers about the system were published in 1998 (Mitrovic 1998a, 1998b, 1998c), with an "IJAIED" paper published in 1999 (Mitrovic and Ohlsson, "International Journal Artificial Intelligence in Education," 10(3-4), 238-256, 1999). We published another…

Evidence to Support Peer Tutoring Programs at the Undergraduate Level

Science.gov (United States)

Colver, Mitchell; Fry, Trevor

2016-01-01

The present study examined undergraduate peer tutoring in three phases. Phase I qualitatively surveyed students' perceptions about the effectiveness of tutoring. Phase II examined the usefulness of promoting regular use of services through a tutoring contract. Phase III utilized an archival, quasi-experimental approach to estimate the effect of…

Effects of Role and Assignment Rationale on Attitudes Formed During Peer Tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Bierman, Karen Linn; Furman, Wyndol

2012-01-01

This study examined the role of contextual factors, such as assignment rationale, on the attitudinal effects of peer tutoring. Fourth-grade children engaged in brief tutoring experiences as either a tutor or tutee. Subjects received four rationales for being selected as tutor or tutee: (a) a competence rationale, (b) a physical characteristic rationale, (c) a chance rationale, or (d) no rationale. As predicted, tutors had more positive attitudes than tutees when they had been given a competence or physical characteristic rationale but not when the tutors were provided a chance rationale or no rationale. Additionally, the tutors’ and tutees’ attitudes were enhanced when no rationale was provided. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for a role-theory analysis of tutoring and their implications for applied programs. PMID:23946549

At the Bridging Point: Tutoring Newly Arrived Students in Sweden

Science.gov (United States)

Avery, Helen

2017-01-01

In Sweden, tutoring in the mother tongue is a special support measure primarily intended for newly arrived students to facilitate their transition into the Swedish school system. Tutoring is premised on the collaboration between the class teacher, responsible for subject-related expertise, and the tutor, who contributes with knowledge of the…

Teaching Database Design with Constraint-Based Tutors

Science.gov (United States)

Mitrovic, Antonija; Suraweera, Pramuditha

2016-01-01

Design tasks are difficult to teach, due to large, unstructured solution spaces, underspecified problems, non-existent problem solving algorithms and stopping criteria. In this paper, we comment on our approach to develop KERMIT, a constraint-based tutor that taught database design. In later work, we re-implemented KERMIT as EER-Tutor, and…

Increased correlation coefficient between the written test score and tutors' performance test scores after training of tutors for assessment of medical students during problem-based learning course in Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Jaiprakash, Heethal; Min, Aung Ko Ko; Ghosh, Sarmishtha

2016-03-01

This paper is aimed at finding if there was a change of correlation between the written test score and tutors' performance test scores in the assessment of medical students during a problem-based learning (PBL) course in Malaysia. This is a cross-sectional observational study, conducted among 264 medical students in two groups from November 2010 to November 2012. The first group's tutors did not receive tutor training; while the second group's tutors were trained in the PBL process. Each group was divided into high, middle and low achievers based on their end-of-semester exam scores. PBL scores were taken which included written test scores and tutors' performance test scores. Pearson correlation coefficient was calculated between the two kinds of scores in each group. The correlation coefficient between the written scores and tutors' scores in group 1 was 0.099 (pcorrelation coefficient in the group where tutors received the PBL training reinforces the importance of tutor training before their participation in the PBL course.

Lecturing skills as predictors of tutoring skills in a problem-based medical curriculum.

Science.gov (United States)

Kassab, Salah Eldin; Hassan, Nahla; Abu-Hijleh, Marwan F; Sequeira, Reginald P

2016-01-01

Recruitment of tutors to work in problem-based learning (PBL) programs is challenging, especially in that most of them are graduated from discipline-based programs. Therefore, this study aims at examining whether lecturing skills of faculty could predict their PBL tutoring skills. This study included evaluation of faculty (n=69) who participated in both tutoring and lecturing within particular PBL units at the College of Medicine and Medical Sciences (CMMS), Arabian Gulf University, Bahrain. Each faculty was evaluated by medical students (n=45±8 for lecturing and 8±2 for PBL tutoring) using structured evaluation forms based on a Likert-type scale (poor to excellent). The prediction of tutoring skills using lecturing skills was statistically analyzed using stepwise linear regression. Among the parameters used to judge lecturing skills, the most important predictor for tutoring skills was subject matter mastery in the lecture by explaining difficult concepts and responding effectively to students' questions. Subject matter mastery in the lecture positively predicted five tutoring skills and accounted for 25% of the variance in overall effectiveness of the PBL tutors (F=22.39, P=0.000). Other important predictors for tutoring skills were providing a relaxed class atmosphere and effective use of audiovisual aids in the lecture. Predicting the tutoring skills based on lecturing skills could have implications for recruiting tutors in PBL medical programs and for tutor training initiatives.

Long-Term Efficacy of Various Natural or "Green" Insecticides against Bed Bugs: A Double-Blind Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Goddard, Jerome

2014-11-28

Bed bugs are resurging throughout the world, and, thus, effective pest control strategies are constantly needed. A few studies have evaluated 25(b) and other natural, or so-called "green" products, as well as over-the-counter insecticides for bed bugs, but additional studies are needed to determine efficacy of bed bug control products. This double-blinded research project was initiated to examine long-term effectiveness of six commercially available natural or "green" insecticides against bed bugs and to compare them with three known traditional residual products. Water was used as a control. Products were evaluated against both susceptible and resistant strains of bed bugs (1200 bugs each), and two different substrates were used. Temprid(®) (Bayer Corporation, Monheim, Germany), Transport(®) (FMC Corp., Philadelphia, PA, USA), Invader(®) (FMC Corporation, Philadelphia, PA USA), Cimexa(®) (Rockwell Laboratories, Kansas City, MO, USA), and BBT-2000(®) (Swepe-Tite LLC, Tupelo, MS, USA) were the only products which showed any substantial (>40%) bed bug control upon exposure to treated substrates after the six-month waiting period, although results with the resistant bed bug strain were much reduced. Alpine dust(®) (BASF Corporation, Florham Park, NJ, USA) killed 27% of bed bugs or less, depending on strain and substrate. EcoRaider(®) (North Bergen, NJ, USA) and Mother Earth D(®) (Whitmire Microgen, Florham Park, NJ, USA) (diatomaceous earth) produced 11% control or less. Cimi-Shield Protect(®) (Pest Barrier, Carson, CA, USA) showed no activity against bed bugs in this study. Analysis using SAS software showed a three-way interaction between treatment, substrate, and bed bug strain (Numerator DF 9; Denominator DF 80; F = 4.90; p < 0.0001).

Hybridization and adaptation to introduced balloon vines in an Australian soapberry bug.

Science.gov (United States)

Andres, J A; Thampy, P R; Mathieson, M T; Loye, J; Zalucki, M P; Dingle, H; Carroll, S P

2013-12-01

Contemporary adaptation of plant feeding insects to introduced hosts provides clear cases of ecologically based population divergence. In most cases the mechanisms permitting rapid differentiation are not well known. Here we study morphological and genetic variation associated with recent shifts by the Australian soapberry bug Leptocoris tagalicus onto two naturalized Neotropical balloon vines, Cardiospermum halicacabum and C. grandiflorum that differ in time since introduction. Our results show that these vines have much larger fruits than the native hosts (Whitewood tree -Atalaya hemiglauca- and Woolly Rambutan -Alectryon tomentosus-) and that bugs living on them have evolved significantly longer beaks and new allometries. Genetic analyses of mitochondrial haplotypes and amplified fragment length polymorphic (AFLP) markers indicate that the lineage of bugs on the annual vine C. halicacabum, the older introduction, is intermediate between the two subspecies of L. tagalicus found on native hosts. Moreover, where the annual vine and Whitewood tree co-occur, the morphology and genomic composition of the bugs are similar to those occurring in allopatry. These results show that hybridization provided the genetic elements underlying the strongly differentiated 'Halicacabum bugs'. In contrast, the bugs feeding on the recently introduced perennial balloon vine (C. grandiflorum) showed no evidence of admixture, and are genetically indistinguishable from the nearby populations on a native host. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Monitoring stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) in mid-Atlantic apple and peach orchards.

Science.gov (United States)

Leskey, T C; Hogmire, H W

2005-02-01

Pyramid traps coated with "industrial safety yellow" exterior latex gloss enamel paint and baited with Euschistus spp. aggregation pheromone, methyl (2E,4Z)-decadienoate captured more stink bugs than all other baited and unbaited trap types in both apple and peach orchards in 2002 and 2003. Commercial sources of dispensers of methyl (2E,4Z)-decadienoate deployed in association with pyramid traps had a significant impact on trap captures. Captures in pyramid traps were four-fold greater when baited with lures from IPM Technologies, Inc. (Portland, OR) than with lures from Suterra (Bend, OR). Variation in yellow pyramid trap color ("industrial safety yellow" and "standard coroplast yellow") and material (plywood, plastic, and masonite) did not affect trap captures. Brown stink bug was the predominant species captured (58%), followed by dusky stink bug, Euschistus tristigmus (Say) (20%); green stink bug, Acrosternum hilare (Say) (14%); and other stink bugs (Brochymena spp. and unidentified nymphs) (8%). Captures in baited pyramid traps were significantly correlated with tree beating samples in both managed and unmanaged apple orchards and with sweep netting samples in the unmanaged apple orchard. However, problems associated with trapping mechanisms of pyramid trap jar tops and jar traps likely resulted in reduced captures in baited traps. Improved trapping mechanisms must be established to develop an effective monitoring tool for stink bugs in mid-Atlantic orchards.

Private Supplementary Tutoring in the Czech Republic

Science.gov (United States)

Štastný, Vít

2016-01-01

The study contributes to the literature on private supplementary tutoring by shedding light on this phenomenon in the Czech Republic. The aim of the paper is to identify the reasons for seeking out private supplementary tutoring and to assess the factors underlying its demand. In the representative sample of 1,265 senior upper-secondary school…

Increased Fos expression among midbrain dopaminergic cell groups during birdsong tutoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Nordeen, E J; Holtzman, D A; Nordeen, K W

2009-08-01

During avian vocal learning, birds memorize conspecific song patterns and then use auditory feedback to match their vocal output to this acquired template. Some models of song learning posit that during tutoring, conspecific visual, social and/or auditory cues activate neuromodulatory systems that encourage acquisition of the tutor's song and attach incentive value to that specific acoustic pattern. This hypothesis predicts that stimuli experienced during social tutoring activate cell populations capable of signaling reward. Using immunocytochemistry for the protein product of the immediate early gene c-Fos, we found that brief exposure of juvenile male zebra finches to a live familiar male tutor increased the density of Fos+ cells within two brain regions implicated in reward processing: the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). This activation of Fos appears to involve both dopaminergic and non-dopaminergic VTA/SNc neurons. Intriguingly, a familiar tutor was more effective than a novel tutor in stimulating Fos expression within these regions. In the periaqueductal gray, a dopamine-enriched cell population that has been implicated in emotional processing, Fos labeling also was increased after tutoring, with a familiar tutor again being more effective than a novel conspecific. As several neural regions implicated in song acquisition receive strong dopaminergic projections from these midbrain nuclei, their activation in conjunction with hearing the tutor's song could help to establish sensory representations that later guide motor sequence learning.

The desktop interface in intelligent tutoring systems

Science.gov (United States)

Baudendistel, Stephen; Hua, Grace

1987-01-01

The interface between an Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) and the person being tutored is critical to the success of the learning process. If the interface to the ITS is confusing or non-supportive of the tutored domain, the effectiveness of the instruction will be diminished or lost entirely. Consequently, the interface to an ITS should be highly integrated with the domain to provide a robust and semantically rich learning environment. In building an ITS for ZetaLISP on a LISP Machine, a Desktop Interface was designed to support a programming learning environment. Using the bitmapped display, windows, and mouse, three desktops were designed to support self-study and tutoring of ZetaLISP. Through organization, well-defined boundaries, and domain support facilities, the desktops provide substantial flexibility and power for the student and facilitate learning ZetaLISP programming while screening the student from the complex LISP Machine environment. The student can concentrate on learning ZetaLISP programming and not on how to operate the interface or a LISP Machine.

Bug tracking and project management system application in an electronic design company

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sadık ARSLAN

2016-05-01

Full Text Available In this study, commercially available Bug Tracking and Management Information Systems has been investigated in a comprehensive manner. The systems that commonly used described in detail. Bug Tracking and Project Management Systems requirements analysis of medium-sized companies and Kentkart Ege Electronic which is an Information Technology company has been made. Obtained by the analysis requirements, the appropriate tools are selected for system application. JIRA that a product of Atlassian company was determined as a Bug Tracking and Project Management application tool. In this study, JIRA system adapted to the requirements, Bug Tracking and Project Management systems is designed in a structure which can be easily used by R&D employees. Cost-Benefit analysis is done and using this project was determined to be quite useful.

How to Find Bed Bugs

Science.gov (United States)

Find and correctly identify an infestation early before it becomes widespread. Look for rusty or reddish stains and pinpoint dark spots on bed sheets or mattresses, and search for bugs near the piping, seams and tags of the mattress and box spring.

Effects of Fourth and Second Graders' Cross-Age Tutoring on Students' Spelling

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Rebekkah J.; Morrison, Timothy G.; Feinauer, Erika; Wilcox, Brad; Black, Sharon

2016-01-01

A quasi-experimental study examined some effects of cross-age tutoring on fourth grade tutors' and second grade tutees' ability to spell accurately and correct errors on their own rough drafts. Half of the participating tutors were trained in tutoring skills; half were not. All participants were given pre- and post-assessments. On dictated writing…

Lecturing skills as predictors of tutoring skills in a problem-based medical curriculum

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kassab SE

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Salah Eldin Kassab,1 Nahla Hassan,1 Marwan F Abu-Hijleh,2 Reginald P Sequeira3 1Department of Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt; 2College of Medicine, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar; 3College of Medicine and Medical Sciences, Arabian Gulf University, Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain Purpose: Recruitment of tutors to work in problem-based learning (PBL programs is challenging, especially in that most of them are graduated from discipline-based programs. Therefore, this study aims at examining whether lecturing skills of faculty could predict their PBL tutoring skills. Methods: This study included evaluation of faculty (n=69 who participated in both tutoring and lecturing within particular PBL units at the College of Medicine and Medical Sciences (CMMS, Arabian Gulf University, Bahrain. Each faculty was evaluated by medical students (n=45±8 for lecturing and 8±2 for PBL tutoring using structured evaluation forms based on a Likert-type scale (poor to excellent. The prediction of tutoring skills using lecturing skills was statistically analyzed using stepwise linear regression. Results: Among the parameters used to judge lecturing skills, the most important predictor for tutoring skills was subject matter mastery in the lecture by explaining difficult concepts and responding effectively to students' questions. Subject matter mastery in the lecture positively predicted five tutoring skills and accounted for 25% of the variance in overall effectiveness of the PBL tutors (F=22.39, P=0.000. Other important predictors for tutoring skills were providing a relaxed class atmosphere and effective use of audiovisual aids in the lecture. Conclusion: Predicting the tutoring skills based on lecturing skills could have implications for recruiting tutors in PBL medical programs and for tutor training initiatives. Keywords: PBL, tutor, tutoring skills, lecturing skills

Diversity of some endophytic fungi associated with rice black bug Paraeucosmetus pallicornis on rice plant

OpenAIRE

Nur, Amin; La Daha; Nurariaty, Agus; Ade, Rosmana; Muh., Fadlan

2015-01-01

A new rice insect pest was sighted in some rice producing areas of South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. This pest is rice black bugs Paraeucosmetus pallicornis. The research aimed to isolation of fungi associated with rice black bugs Paraeucosmetus pallicornis, so as to know the cause of a bitter taste to the rice. The isolation of the fungi consist of three kinds of treatment, namely rice black bugs without sterilization, with sterilization and rice black bugs cut and sterilized. The resul...

Simulation-Based Cryosurgery Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) Prototype

Science.gov (United States)

Sehrawat, Anjali; Keelan, Robert; Shimada, Kenji; Wilfong, Dona M.; McCormick, James T.; Rabin, Yoed

2015-01-01

As a part of an ongoing effort to develop computerized training tools for cryosurgery, the current study presents a proof-of-concept for a computerized tool for cryosurgery tutoring. The tutoring system lists geometrical constraints of cryoprobes placement, simulates cryoprobe insertion, displays a rendered shape of the prostate, enables distance measurements, simulates the corresponding thermal history, and evaluates the mismatch between the target region shape and a pre-selected planning isotherm. The quality of trainee planning is measured in comparison with a computer-generated planning, created for each case study by previously developed planning algorithms. Two versions of the tutoring system have been tested in the current study: (i) an unguided version, where the trainee can practice cases in unstructured sessions, and (ii) an intelligent tutoring system (ITS), which forces the trainee to follow specific steps, believed by the authors to potentially shorten the learning curve. While the tutoring level in this study aims only at geometrical constraints on cryoprobe placement and the resulting thermal histories, it creates a unique opportunity to gain insight into the process outside of the operation room. Posttest results indicate that the ITS system maybe more beneficial than the non-ITS system, but the proof-of-concept is demonstrated with either system. PMID:25941163

Stability of Spatial Distributions of Stink Bugs, Boll Injury, and NDVI in Cotton.

Science.gov (United States)

Reay-Jones, Francis P F; Greene, Jeremy K; Bauer, Philip J

2016-10-01

A 3-yr study was conducted to determine the degree of aggregation of stink bugs and boll injury in cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., and their spatial association with a multispectral vegetation index (normalized difference vegetation index [NDVI]). Using the spatial analysis by distance indices analyses, stink bugs were less frequently aggregated (17% for adults and 4% for nymphs) than boll injury (36%). NDVI values were also significantly aggregated within fields in 19 of 48 analyses (40%), with the majority of significant indices occurring in July and August. Paired NDVI datasets from different sampling dates were frequently associated (86.5% for weekly intervals among datasets). Spatial distributions of both stink bugs and boll injury were less stable than for NDVI, with positive associations varying from 12.5 to 25% for adult stink bugs for weekly intervals, depending on species. Spatial distributions of boll injury from stink bug feeding were more stable than stink bugs, with 46% positive associations among paired datasets with weekly intervals. NDVI values were positively associated with boll injury from stink bug feeding in 11 out of 22 analyses, with no significant negative associations. This indicates that NDVI has potential as a component of site-specific management. Future work should continue to examine the value of remote sensing for insect management in cotton, with an aim to develop tools such as risk assessment maps that will help growers to reduce insecticide inputs. © The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Species composition, monitoring, and feeding injury of stink bugs (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) in blackberry.

Science.gov (United States)

Brennan, S A; Liburd, O E; Eger, J E; Rhodes, E M

2013-04-01

Blackberry (Rubus spp.) production in Florida has increased > 100% within the past two decades. and several insect pests, including stink bugs (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae), have been observed feeding on this crop. The objectives for this study were to determine the stink bug species present in blackberry; to develop monitoring tools for stink bugs in blackberry; and to describe feeding injury to blackberries by Euschistus quadrator Rolston, a relatively new stink bug pest to Florida, that has spread throughout the state. In a field survey, E. quadrator was the most abundant stink bug species, followed by Euschistus servus Say, Euschistus obscurus (Palisot de Beauvois), Thyanta custator (F.), Proxys punctulatus (Palisot de Beauvois), and Podisus maculiventris Say. Yellow pyramid traps caught more stink bugs than tube traps with or without the addition of Euschistus spp. pheromone lures. There were no statistical differences between traps baited with a Trécé Pherocon Centrum lure, a Suterra Scenturion lure, and an unbaited trap. These results were supported by Y-tube olfactometer assays with E. quadrator where there were no differences between pheromone baited lures and a control. Injury to berries caused by E. quadrator adults and third instars was similar, and both adults and third instars fed more on green berries compared with turning berries. In addition, adults fed more on green berries compared with ripe fruit. The most common injury to green berries was discoloration. In contrast, misshapen drupelets were commonly seen on turning and ripe berries. The potential for managing stink bugs in blackberries to prevent them from reaching damaging levels is discussed.

Fundamentals of Adaptive Intelligent Tutoring Systems for Self-Regulated Learning

Science.gov (United States)

2015-03-01

ARL-SR-0318 ● MAR 2015 US Army Research Laboratory Fundamentals of Adaptive Intelligent Tutoring Systems for Self-Regulated...Adaptive Intelligent Tutoring Systems for Self-Regulated Learning by Robert A Sottilare Human Research and Engineering Directorate, ARL...TITLE AND SUBTITLE Fundamentals of Adaptive Intelligent Tutoring Systems for Self-Regulated Learning 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c

The learning theories’ knowledge applied in the performance of distance tutor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fernanda Abreu de Moraes Figueiredo

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract: This study aimed to identify the most influential theory of learning related to the practice of mentoring from behaviorism, cognitivism, humanism, the sociocultural theory and connectivism, and apply the most appropriate theories to solve common problems in distance education. For this purpose, we used the literature method. It was noted that each of the theories end up being influential to the role of tutor. Therefore, the learning tends to be richer in the ratio and effective to apply different theories together. However, that support better substantiating tutor's role is humanism, the sociocultural theory and connectivism. It was noticed that the problems often experienced by students in distance education are due to failures tutor interaction and affection, implying to resolve them closer tutor with the student to have more responsibility in the exchange of information, meeting deadlines and clarity in the disclosure notes assessments. Knowledge are mainly from humanism and sociocultural theory that end up not only reasons for existence of the tutor as serving to improve the development of the quality of tutor-student interaction. Keywords: learning theories; distance learning (DL; tutor distance.

Tutoring system for nondestructive testing using computer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jin Koo; Koh, Sung Nam [Joong Ang Inspection Co.,Ltd., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Shim, Yun Ju; Kim, Min Koo [Dept. of Computer Engineering, Aju University, Suwon (Korea, Republic of)

1997-10-15

This paper is written to introduce a multimedia tutoring system for nondestructive testing using personal computer. Nondestructive testing, one of the chief methods for inspecting welds and many other components, is very difficult for the NDT inspectors to understand its technical basis without a wide experience. And it is necessary for considerable repeated education and training for keeping their knowledge. The tutoring system that can simulate NDT works is suggested to solve the above problem based on reasonable condition. The tutoring system shows basic theories of nondestructive testing in a book-style with video images and hyper-links, and it offers practices, in which users can simulate the testing equipment. The book-style and simulation practices provide effective and individual environments for learning nondestructive testing.

Tutoring system for nondestructive testing using computer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jin Koo; Koh, Sung Nam; Shim, Yun Ju; Kim, Min Koo

1997-01-01

This paper is written to introduce a multimedia tutoring system for nondestructive testing using personal computer. Nondestructive testing, one of the chief methods for inspecting welds and many other components, is very difficult for the NDT inspectors to understand its technical basis without a wide experience. And it is necessary for considerable repeated education and training for keeping their knowledge. The tutoring system that can simulate NDT works is suggested to solve the above problem based on reasonable condition. The tutoring system shows basic theories of nondestructive testing in a book-style with video images and hyper-links, and it offers practices, in which users can simulate the testing equipment. The book-style and simulation practices provide effective and individual environments for learning nondestructive testing.

Implementing peer tutoring in a graduate medical education programme.

Science.gov (United States)

Salerno-Kennedy, Rossana; Henn, Pat; O'Flynn, Siun

2010-06-01

In modern times, peer tutoring methods have been explored in health care education for over 30 years. In this paper, we report our experience of implementing a peer-tutoring approach to Clinical Skills Laboratory (CSL) training in the Graduate Entry in Medicine Programme (GEM) at University College Cork. Eighteen fourth-year medical students were recruited as peer tutors for CSL sessions on physical examination. In order to standardise the process, we developed a training course for peer tutors that comprised two stages. They then ran the practical sessions with junior students, under the watchful eye of medical educators. At the end of the last CSL session, the students were given 10 minutes to reflect individually on the experience, and were asked to complete a feedback form. Twenty-four of the 42 GEM students and six of the seven Senior Tutors (STs) completed and returned their feedback forms. With the caveats of small sample sizes and low response rates, both groups reported that they had both positive and negative experiences of peer tutoring, but that the positive experiences predominated. The overall experience was positive. In terms of the primary thesis of this study, the STs thought that they were well prepared by the teaching staff to take part in these teaching sessions. © Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2010.

Green plant bug from South Texas gets a common name - the "verde plant" bug

Science.gov (United States)

Some cotton producers from south Texas and the Gulf Coast regions have been unfortunate over the last few years because they have had to deal with a green plant bug, Creontiades signatus, that will feed on cotton fruit. The insect was initially, and erroneously, thought to be Creontiades dilutus, an...

Dr Math moves to C³TO: Chatter call center/tutoring online

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Butgereit, L

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Dr Math is a mobile tutoring system which has been running in South Africa for three years. It links primary and secondary school pupils to tutors in mathematics. The pupils use the popular Mxit chat client on their cell phones. The tutors use full...

The Challenges of Becoming Tutors at Electronic Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

María Eugenia López Hurtado

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a research report of my own experience as a tutor in electronic environments which I have accumulated throughout the guidance for English learners of basic level at a public university. This article looks for illustrating the researcher's own perceptions and challenges as becoming an e-tutor. Therefore, I will introduce an overview of studies and experiences that address this issue in international contexts, and then I will refer to my own experience where I describe the roles that emerged while I was administrating and delivering e- learning pedagogical experiences such as an exploration of some skills and learning activities carried out in an English course; this description embraces three different stages (before, during and after of implementation. Subsequently, some discussion of the results is provided gathered from the research instruments I used. Finally, some conclusions and suggestions are provided in regards to the research question of the study, its outcomes on how tutors' challenges shape tutor's roles in electronic environments.

Web-based eTutor for learningn electrical circuit analysis

OpenAIRE

Debono, Jason; Muscat, Adrian; Porter, Chris; Connections

2018-01-01

This paper discusses a web-based eTutor for learning electrical circuit analysis. The eTutor system components, mainly the user-interface and the assessment model, are described. The system architecture developed provides a framework to support interactive sessions between the human and the machine for the case when the human is a student and the machine a tutor and also for the case when the roles of the human and the machine are swapped. To motivate the usefulness of the data...

A Study of Learners’ Reflection on Andragogical Skills of Distance Education Tutors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irshad Hussain

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The researcher conducted present study with the objectives to a. evaluate attitude of learners towards academic and tutoring skills of distance education tutors, b. assess the opinion of distance learners about assessment and evaluation skills of their tutors and c. examine reflection of learners on scaffolding skills of distance education tutors. The population of the study consisted of learners of pre-service teacher education (B.Ed semester spring 2010 programme of Allama Iqbal Open University Islamabad. The sample of the study was taken through the convenient sampling technique from three regions of Allama Iqbal Open University situated in the Punjab Province. A questionnaire was designed using a five-point (rating/Likert scale to elicit the reflection of (600 learners. However, the response rate was 78% (468 of the total sample. Interview schedule was also used as a research tool for collecting qualitative data from (50 respondents in five groups. The researcher analysed data quantitatively and qualitatively. The study concluded that the overall reflection of distance learners on andragogical skills of their tutors was positive. Apparently they were satisfied with andragogical skills of their tutors. They asserted that their tutors had academic and tutoring skills (consisting of encouraging, guiding & facilitating –emboldening and enabling skills, assessment & evaluation skills, and technical and social skills. However, tutors needed training to use social websites, Skype and mobile phone conferences and online discussion. Keeping in view the conclusion of the study, the researcher recommended short and long term training of tutors to use information and communication technologies appropriately.

Involving Effectively Teachers and Students in the Life Cycle of an Intelligent Tutoring System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Virvou

2000-01-01

Full Text Available This paper highlights the important role that teachers and students may play in the life cycle of an intelligent tutoring system. In this research, we have developed a system called “EasyMath”, a tutoring system for Algebra that incorporates intelligence. One of the primary aims of EasyMath is to make it useful in school classrooms. This is why, school teachers of mathematics and their students have been involved throughout the life cycle of EasyMath. The system was developed following the rational unified process, an object-oriented methodology for developing software through multiple iterations. The design of EasyMath has been based on the results of an empirical study that was conducted at schools and the resulting product was evaluated by school teachers as well as students.

What’s about Peer Tutoring Learning Model?

Science.gov (United States)

Muthma'innah, M.

2017-09-01

Mathematics learning outcomes in Indonesia in general is still far from satisfactory. One effort that could be expected to solve the problem is to apply the model of peer tutoring learning in mathematics. This study aims to determine whether the results of students’ mathematics learning can be enhanced through peer tutoring learning models. This type of research is the study of literature, so that the method used is to summarize and analyze the results of relevant research that has been done. Peer tutoring learning model is a model of learning in which students learn in small groups that are grouped with different ability levels, all group members to work together and help each other to understand the material. By paying attention to the syntax of the learning, then learning will be invaluable peer tutoring for students who served as teachers and students are taught. In mathematics, the implementation of this learning model can make students understand each other mathematical concepts and help students in solving mathematical problems that are poorly understood, due to the interaction between students in learning. Then it will be able to improve learning outcomes in mathematics. The impact, it can be applied in mathematics learning.

Mixed-method tutoring support improves learning outcomes of veterinary students in basic subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

García-Iglesias, María J; Pérez-Martínez, Claudia; Gutiérrez-Martín, César B; Díez-Laiz, Raquel; Sahagún-Prieto, Ana M

2018-02-01

Tutoring is a useful tool in the university teaching-learning binomial, although its development is impaired in large classes. Recent improvements in information and communication technologies have made tutoring possible via the Internet. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of mixed-method academic tutoring in two basic subjects in Veterinary Science studies at the University of León (Spain) to optimize the usefulness of tutoring support in the college environment. This quasi-experimental study was firstly carried out as a pilot study in a small group of tutored students of "Cytology and Histology" (CH) (47/186; 25.3%) and "Veterinary Pharmacology" (VP) (33/141; 23.4%) subjects, and was implemented in a large class of CH the next academic year (150 students) while comparing the results with those obtained in a previous tutorless course (162 students). Tutored students were given access to online questionnaires with electronic feedback on each subject. In addition to traditional tutoring carried out in both tutored and tutorless students, the pilot study included three sessions of face-to-face tutoring in order to monitor the progress of students. Its efficacy was assessed by monitoring students' examination scores and attendance as well as a satisfaction survey. Although the examination attendance rate in the pilot study was not significantly different between tutored and tutorless groups in both subjects, an increase for numerical scores in tutored groups was observed, with a significant higher final score in VP (p = 0.001) and in the CH practice exams (first term, p = 0.009; final, p = 0.023). Good and merit scores were also better in tutored students with significant differences in VP (p = 0.005). Students felt comfortable with the tutoring service (100% in CH; 91.7% in VP). Implementation of this additional support in CH also resulted in a significant increase of attendance at the final exam in tutored courses (87.3% versus 77

DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTELLIGENT INSTRUCTIVE SYSTEM: Scholastic Tutor (St*

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adebiyi MARION O.

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS is an act of impacting knowledge while computer teaches or acts as the tutors which is a supplement to human teachers. The ability to teach each student based on their individual abilities a major advantage posed by ITS and that is why it is being embraced in this work. This work describes the design of an Intelligent Tutoring System that was tagged Scholastic tutor (St*, which has the individual learning and collaborative problem-solving modules. The individual tutoring module was designed to provide appropriate lessons to individuals based on his/her background knowledge level, interest, and learning style and assimilation rate prior to using the tutoring system. A software agent is used to monitor and process these parameters, arrange the learning topic, and exercises, for each individual. The collaborative problem-based tutoring module was designed to present tutorial problems and provides facilities to assist learners with some useful information and advice for problem solving. This is because the present lecturing methodology which is the conventional teaching methodology provides an interactive classroom setting that promotes the open exchange of ideas and allows for the lecturer to communicate directly with the students but has a great disadvantage of not teaching all the students according to their own learning rate and pace. The intelligent tutor solves this problem by providing individualised learning for each student where they can learn according to their own pace and learning abilities it will provide remedy and advice when learners encounter difficulties during learning session. The classical model of ITS architecture has four main modules; domain model, student model, tutoring model and the user interface model.

Tutoring deaf students in higher education: a comparison of baccalaureate and sub-baccalaureate student perceptions.

Science.gov (United States)

Lang, Harry G; Biser, Eileen; Mousley, Keith; Orlando, Richard; Porter, Jeff

2004-01-01

Seventy-three deaf college students completed a survey examining perceptions about tutoring outcomes and emphases, characteristics of tutors, and responsibilities associated with learning through tutoring. The comparisons revealed that while baccalaureate and sub-baccalaureate students have many similar perceptions about tutoring, there are also some striking differences. In particular, as compared to the sub-baccalaureate students, baccalaureate students have a stronger preference for focusing on course content and for working with tutors who actively involve them during the tutoring sessions. In addition, baccalaureate students prefer to decide the focus of the tutoring themselves while sub-baccalaureate students tend to leave the decision to the tutor. The results of the analyses with three scales measuring perceptions of tutoring dimensions are summarized and recommendations for the selection and preparation of tutors, as well as for future research, are provided.

Bug22 influences cilium morphology and the post-translational modification of ciliary microtubules

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teresa Mendes Maia

2014-01-01

Cilia and flagella are organelles essential for motility and sensing of environmental stimuli. Depending on the cell type, cilia acquire a defined set of functions and, accordingly, are built with an appropriate length and molecular composition. Several ciliary proteins display a high degree of conservation throughout evolution and mutations in ciliary genes are associated with various diseases such as ciliopathies and infertility. Here, we describe the role of the highly conserved ciliary protein, Bug22, in Drosophila. Previous studies in unicellular organisms have shown that Bug22 is required for proper cilia function, but its exact role in ciliogenesis has not been investigated yet. Null Bug22 mutant flies display cilia-associated phenotypes and nervous system defects. Furthermore, sperm differentiation is blocked at the individualization stage, due to impaired migration of the individualization machinery. Tubulin post-translational modifications (PTMs such as polyglycylation, polyglutamylation or acetylation, are determinants of microtubule (MT functions and stability in centrioles, cilia and neurons. We found defects in the timely incorporation of polyglycylation in sperm axonemal MTs of Bug22 mutants. In addition, we found that depletion of human Bug22 in RPE1 cells resulted in the appearance of longer cilia and reduced axonemal polyglutamylation. Our work identifies Bug22 as a protein that plays a conserved role in the regulation of PTMs of the ciliary axoneme.

Bug Distribution and Statistical Pattern Classification.

Science.gov (United States)

Tatsuoka, Kikumi K.; Tatsuoka, Maurice M.

1987-01-01

The rule space model permits measurement of cognitive skill acquisition and error diagnosis. Further discussion introduces Bayesian hypothesis testing and bug distribution. An illustration involves an artificial intelligence approach to testing fractions and arithmetic. (Author/GDC)

ASPIRE: An Authoring System and Deployment Environment for Constraint-Based Tutors

Science.gov (United States)

Mitrovic, Antonija; Martin, Brent; Suraweera, Pramuditha; Zakharov, Konstantin; Milik, Nancy; Holland, Jay; McGuigan, Nicholas

2009-01-01

Over the last decade, the Intelligent Computer Tutoring Group (ICTG) has implemented many successful constraint-based Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) in a variety of instructional domains. Our tutors have proven their effectiveness not only in controlled lab studies but also in real classrooms, and some of them have been commercialized.…

Efficacy of an Essential Oil-Based Pesticide for Controlling Bed Bug (Cimex lectularius Infestations in Apartment Buildings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Changlu Wang

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus F. are among the most difficult urban pests to manage. Many essential oil-based bed bug control products that are considered reduced risk to mammals compared to synthetic insect neurotoxins have become commercially available, but their effectiveness as a stand-alone control method is unknown. This study assessed the field efficacy of an essential oil-based bed bug control product (EcoRaider; a.i. 1% geraniol + 1% cedar oil + 2% sodium lauryl sulfate compared to a pyrethroid and neonicotinoid mixture spray (0.075% Temprid SC; a.i. beta-cyfluthrin + imidacloprid. After 12 weeks, the three treatments—EcoRaider, Temprid SC, and EcoRaider + Temprid SC caused 92.5 ± 2.7, 92.9 ± 3.0, and 91.7% ± 2.7% bed bug count reduction, respectively. No significant differences existed in the bed bug reduction among the treatments. Bed bugs were eliminated from only 22% of the treated apartments. Among those still with bed bugs, 76% of the residents did not know bed bugs were present. We documented the residents’ self-control practices and discussed the potential of using essential oil-based insecticides in bed bug management programs to minimize the health risks to building occupants and pets and to slow down the development of insecticide resistance.

Song tutoring in presinging zebra finch juveniles biases a small population of higher-order song-selective neurons toward the tutor song.

Science.gov (United States)

Adret, Patrice; Meliza, C Daniel; Margoliash, Daniel

2012-10-01

We explored physiological changes correlated with song tutoring by recording the responses of caudal nidopallium neurons of zebra finches aged P21-P24 (days post hatching) to a broad spectrum of natural and synthetic stimuli. Those birds raised with their fathers tended to show behavioral evidence of song memorization but not of singing; thus auditory responses were not confounded by the birds' own vocalizations. In study 1, 37 of 158 neurons (23%) in 17 of 22 tutored and untutored birds were selective for only 1 of 10 stimuli comprising broadband signals, early juvenile songs and calls, female calls, and adult songs. Approximately 30% of the selective neurons (12/37 neurons in 9 birds) were selective for adult conspecific songs. All these were found in the song system nuclei HVC and paraHVC. Of 122 neurons (17 birds) in tutored birds, all of the conspecific song-selective neurons (8 neurons in 6 birds) were selective for the adult tutor song; none was selective for unfamiliar song. In study 2 with a different sampling strategy, we found that 11 of 12 song-selective neurons in 6 of 7 birds preferred the tutor song; none preferred unfamiliar or familiar conspecific songs. Most of these neurons were found in caudal lateral nidopallium (NCL) below HVC. Thus by the time a bird begins to sing, there are small numbers of tutor song-selective neurons distributed in several forebrain regions. We hypothesize that a small population of higher-order auditory neurons is innately selective for complex features of behaviorally relevant stimuli and these responses are modified by specific perceptual/social experience during development.

Comparing Fine-Grained Source Code Changes And Code Churn For Bug Prediction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Giger, E.; Pinzger, M.; Gall, H.C.

2011-01-01

A significant amount of research effort has been dedicated to learning prediction models that allow project managers to efficiently allocate resources to those parts of a software system that most likely are bug-prone and therefore critical. Prominent measures for building bug prediction models are

Usage of data warehouse for analysing software's bugs

Science.gov (United States)

Živanov, Danijel; Krstićev, Danijela Boberić; Mirković, Duško

2017-07-01

We analysed the database schema of Bugzilla system and taking into account user's requirements for reporting, we presented a dimensional model for the data warehouse which will be used for reporting software defects. The idea proposed in this paper is not to throw away Bugzilla system because it certainly has many strengths, but to make integration of Bugzilla and the proposed data warehouse. Bugzilla would continue to be used for recording bugs that occur during the development and maintenance of software while the data warehouse would be used for storing data on bugs in an appropriate form, which is more suitable for analysis.

Effects of First-Grade Number Knowledge Tutoring With Contrasting Forms of Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Fuchs, Lynn S; Geary, David C; Compton, Donald L; Fuchs, Douglas; Schatschneider, Christopher; Hamlett, Carol L; Deselms, Jacqueline; Seethaler, Pamela M; Wilson, Julie; Craddock, Caitlin F; Bryant, Joan D; Luther, Kurstin; Changas, Paul

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of 1st-grade number knowledge tutoring with contrasting forms of practice. Tutoring occurred 3 times per week for 16 weeks. In each 30-min session, the major emphasis (25 min) was number knowledge; the other 5 min provided practice in 1 of 2 forms. Nonspeeded practice reinforced relations and principles addressed in number knowledge tutoring. Speeded practice promoted quick responding and use of efficient counting procedures to generate many correct responses. At-risk students were randomly assigned to number knowledge tutoring with speeded practice ( n = 195), number knowledge tutoring with nonspeeded practice ( n = 190), and control (no tutoring, n = 206). Each tutoring condition produced stronger learning than control on all 4 mathematics outcomes. Speeded practice produced stronger learning than nonspeeded practice on arithmetic and 2-digit calculations, but effects were comparable on number knowledge and word problems. Effects of both practice conditions on arithmetic were partially mediated by increased reliance on retrieval, but only speeded practice helped at-risk children compensate for weak reasoning ability.

Supporting undergraduate nursing students through structured personal tutoring: Some reflections.

Science.gov (United States)

Watts, Tessa E

2011-02-01

Support is imperative for nursing students worldwide as they face the many challenges associated with learning and working. Moreover enhancing student retention is an increasing concern for institutions across the globe. The personal tutor is a frequently hidden yet potentially significant figure in many students' experience of higher education. This paper offers some critical reflections on a structured approach to personal tutoring within an undergraduate nursing programme in a research focused Welsh university. Structured personal tutoring can provide an organised, coherent and proactive support system throughout students' educational programmes. However the approach changes the shape of personal tutoring and has the potential to increase academics' workloads and with it costs. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Peer Tutoring with Child-Centered Play Therapy Language

Science.gov (United States)

Vavreck, Sarah; Esposito, Judy

2012-01-01

The focus of this paper is on responses from fifth grade peer tutors who were trained to use child-centered play therapy language during tutoring sessions with kindergarteners. The focus of this project was to identify academic and social/emotional benefits of participating in the program. Results indicated that participation in the program…

Managing Face Threats and Instructions in Online Tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Brummernhenrich, Benjamin; Jucks, Regina

2013-01-01

Although tutoring is very effective, tutors often neglect certain strategies such as direct negative feedback. This might be because they want to avoid threatening their tutee's face. The concept of face derives from politeness theory and refers to the aspects of autonomy and social appreciation people claim for themselves and strive to negotiate…

Who Is the Preferred Tutor in Clinical Skills Training: Physicians, Nurses, or Peers?

Science.gov (United States)

Abay, Ece Şükriye; Turan, Sevgi; Odabaşı, Orhan; Elçin, Melih

2017-01-01

Phenomenon: Clinical skills centers allow structured training of undergraduate medical students for the acquisition of clinical skills in a simulated environment. Physician, nurse, or peer tutors are employed for training in those centers. All tutors should have appropriate training about the methodology used in the clinical skills training. Many of the studies revealed the effectiveness of various types of tutors. The aim of our study was to evaluate medical students' satisfaction with clinical skills training, and their opinions about the differences in coaching skills among the physician, nurse, and peer tutors. This study was conducted with third-year students (467 students) in 2013-2014 academic year at Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine. Participation rate was 85 % (397 students). The students attended the suturing skill training in groups of 40 students. First, a faculty member from the Department of Medical Education delivered a video demonstration and conducted discussion. After the demonstration, the students were divided into groups of 5-6 students. A physician, nurse, or a peer tutor facilitated each group. The students were asked to complete the Coaching Skills Evaluation Form after the practicum session. It contained 13 criteria for assessing the coaching skills. Additionally, the form included a question for rating the student's satisfaction with the tutor. The performance of the tutors at each step was rated on a three-point scale. Kruskal Wallis analysis was used to compare students' scores for their tutors. The students' satisfaction with tutors was high for all of the tutors. However, there was no difference between students' scores in suturing skill, and between physician, nurse, and peer tutors' coaching skills. Insights: In this study, we revealed that physician, nurse, and peer tutors were equally effective on the students' performances. They were also regarded as effective in their teaching role by students. But the most important

Do-it-yourself Bed Bug Control

Science.gov (United States)

... Contact Us Share Do-it-yourself Bed Bug Control Información relacionada disponible en español Can you treat ... all of the residents to participate. Achieving complete control can take weeks to months, depending on the ...

Tutoring szkolny jako koncepcja i metoda wsparcia rozwoju ucznia

OpenAIRE

Drozd, Ewa; Zembrzuska, Agnieszka

2013-01-01

Celem artykułu jest dokonanie opisu koncepcji i metody tutoringu szkolnego w odniesieniu do kilkuletnich doświadczeń programu Kolegium Tutorów realizowanego przy wsparciu lokalnych władz oświatowych. Tutoring ma korzenie akademickie jako zindywidualizowana metoda pracy studenta z profesorem, jego istotą jest otwarcie na potrzeby drugiego człowieka i wspieranie w rozwoju. Można wskazać kilka źródeł filozoficznych, które dookreślają czym współcześnie jest tutoring (sokratejski dialog, filozofia...

Automated topic spotting provides added efficiency in a chat based tutoring environment

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Butgereit, L

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Dr Math is a mobile, online tutoring project which allows primary and secondary school pupils to contact tutors in mathematics using text based chat systems on their cell phones. The tutors use traditional Internet based workstations. Dr Math...

Peer tutors as learning and teaching partners: a cumulative ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... paper explores the kinds of development in tutors' thinking and action that are possible when training and development is theoretically informed, coherent, and oriented towards improving practice. Keywords: academic development, academic literacies, cumulative learning, higher education, peer tutoring, writing centres.

Bed Bugs are Public Health Pests

Science.gov (United States)

EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a joint statement on the public health impacts of bed bugs, which are blood-sucking ectoparasites (external parasites). EPA also has a pesticide registration notice on this topic.

Determining Difficulty of Questions in Intelligent Tutoring Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Gunel, Korhan; Asliyan, Rifat

2009-01-01

The object of this study is to model the level of a question difficulty by a differential equation at a pre-specified domain knowledge, to be used in an educational support system. For this purpose, we have developed an intelligent tutoring system for mathematics education. Intelligent Tutoring Systems are computer systems designed for improvement…

Tutor Trust Secondary: Evaluation Report and Executive Summary

Science.gov (United States)

Buchanan, Emily; Morrison, Jo; Walker, Matthew; Aston, Helen; Cook, Rose

2015-01-01

The Tutor Trust is a Manchester-based charity that aims to provide affordable small group and one-to-one tuition, predominantly to disadvantaged pupils in schools in challenging communities. The tutors are university students and recent graduates, enabling tuition to be provided at a competitive rate on a not-for-profit basis. This three-year…

Tutoring in higher education in Portugal and Spain : lessons learned from six initiatives in place

OpenAIRE

Flores, Maria Assunção; Simão, Ana Margarida Veiga; Carrasco, Vicente

2012-01-01

Tutoring has been one of the issues which have received growing interest within the context of restructuring process in higher education under the so-called Bologna process in Europe. In this paper six tutoring initiatives currently being implemented in Portuguese and Spanish universities are examined in the light of the framework within which tutoring operates in higher education contexts. The various kinds of tutoring — mentoring, curricular tutoring, academic tutoring and training-related ...

The Effect of Tutoring With Nonstandard Equations for Students With Mathematics Difficulty.

Science.gov (United States)

Powell, Sarah R; Driver, Melissa K; Julian, Tyler E

2015-01-01

Students often misinterpret the equal sign (=) as operational instead of relational. Research indicates misinterpretation of the equal sign occurs because students receive relatively little exposure to equations that promote relational understanding of the equal sign. No study, however, has examined effects of nonstandard equations on the equation solving and equal-sign understanding of students with mathematics difficulty (MD). In the present study, second-grade students with MD (n = 51) were randomly assigned to standard equations tutoring, combined tutoring (standard and nonstandard equations), and no-tutoring control. Combined tutoring students demonstrated greater gains on equation-solving assessments and equal-sign tasks compared to the other two conditions. Standard tutoring students demonstrated improved skill on equation solving over control students, but combined tutoring students' performance gains were significantly larger. Results indicate that exposure to and practice with nonstandard equations positively influence student understanding of the equal sign. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2013.

The European Nuclear Safety Training and Tutoring Institute

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2012-01-01

The European Nuclear Safety Training and Tutoring Institute, ENSTTI, is an initiative of European Technical Safety Organizations (TSO) in order to provide vocational training and tutoring in the methods and practices required to perform assessment in nuclear safety, nuclear security and radiation protection. ENSTTI calls on TSOs' expertise to maximize the transmission of safety and security knowledge, practical experience and culture. Training, tutoring and courses for specialists are achieved through practical lectures, working group and technical visits and lead to a certificate after knowledge testing. ENSTTI contributes to the harmonization of nuclear safety and security practices and to the networking of today and future nuclear safety experts in Europe and beyond. (A.C.)

Development and Validation of the Motivation for Tutoring Questionnaire in Problem-Based Learning Programs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Salah Eldin Kassab

2017-06-01

Discussion: Analyzing the tutors’ scores of their motivation for PBL tutoring yielded three significantly correlated constructs representing tutoring self-efficacy, tutoring interest and tutoring value. The findings demonstrated high internal consistency reliability of the questionnaire, strong correlation between the three constructs as well as correlations between the constructs and the self-rated tutoring skills scores. Taken together, the current study demonstrates that the newly developed instrument measuring motivation for PBL tutoring exhibits good psychometric properties. The findings in this paper pave the way for further studies for refining the measurement of this construct in different problem-based contexts.

Integrating Symbolic Execution with Sensornet Simulation for Efficient Bug Finding

OpenAIRE

Österlind, Fredrik; Sasnauskas, Raimondas; Dustmann, Oscar Soria; Dunkels, Adam; Wehrle, Klaus

2010-01-01

High-coverage testing of sensornet applications is vital for pre-deployment bug cleansing, but has previously been difficult due to the limited set of available tools. We integrate the KleeNet symbolic execution engine with the COOJA network simulator to allow for straight-forward and intuitive high-coverage testing initiated from a simulation environment. A tight coupling of simulation and testing helps detect, narrow down, and fix complex interaction bugs in an early ...

Corruption Risks of Private Tutoring: Case of Georgia

Science.gov (United States)

Kobakhidze, Magda Nutsa

2014-01-01

The paper focuses on teacher-supplied private tutoring in the context of post-Soviet Georgia, and elucidates the ways in which teacher-supplied private tutoring can be related to educational corruption. The paper draws on data from in-depth interviews of 18 school teachers in different parts of Georgia in 2013. The findings of the qualitative…

Stepwise Advice Negotiation in Writing Center Peer Tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Innhwa

2014-01-01

While the delivery and reception of advice is a practice integral to a wide range of settings, little attention has been given to the detailed practices of advice resistance and how it leads to advice negotiation. Based on 7 hours of videotaped tutoring interactions among 6 tutors and 11 tutees, this conversation analytic study examines the…

Comparative Performance Analysis of Machine Learning Techniques for Software Bug Detection

OpenAIRE

Saiqa Aleem; Luiz Fernando Capretz; Faheem Ahmed

2015-01-01

Machine learning techniques can be used to analyse data from different perspectives and enable developers to retrieve useful information. Machine learning techniques are proven to be useful in terms of software bug prediction. In this paper, a comparative performance analysis of different machine learning techniques is explored f or software bug prediction on public available data sets. Results showed most of the mac ...

Effectiveness of a Reduced-Risk Insecticide Based Bed Bug Management Program in Low-Income Housing

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Narinderpal Singh

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Bed bug (Cimex lectularius L. infestations are becoming increasingly common in low-income communities. Once they are introduced, elimination is very difficult. As part of the efforts to develop effective and safe bed bug management programs, we conducted a laboratory study evaluating the efficacy of a reduced-risk insecticide—Alpine aerosol (0.5% dinotefuran. We then conducted a field evaluation of a reduced-risk insecticide based integrated pest management (IPM program in low-income family apartments with young children. In laboratory evaluations, direct spray and 5 min exposure to dry Alpine aerosol residue caused 100.0 ± 0.0 and 91.7 ± 8.3% mortality to bed bug nymphs, respectively. Direct Alpine aerosol spray killed 91.3 ± 4.3% of the eggs. The IPM program included education, steam, bagging infested linens, placing intercepting devices under furniture legs and corners of rooms, applying Alpine aerosol and Alpine dust (0.25% dinotefuran, 95% diatomaceous earth dust, and regularly scheduled monitoring and re-treatment. Nine apartments ranging from 1–1,428 (median: 29 bed bugs based on visual inspection and Climbup interceptor counts were included. Over a 6-month period, an average 172 g insecticide (Alpine aerosol + Alpine dust was used in each apartment, a 96% reduction in pesticide usage compared to chemical only treatment reported in a similar environment. The IPM program resulted in an average of 96.8 ± 2.2% reduction in the number of bed bugs. However, elimination of bed bugs was only achieved in three lightly infested apartments (<30 bed bugs at the beginning. Elimination success was closely correlated with the level of bed bug populations.

The demand for private tutoring in Turkey: unintended consequences of curriculum reform

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Altinyelken, H.K.; Bray, M.; Mazawi, A.E.; Sultana, R.G.

2013-01-01

This chapter focuses on the private tutoring phenomenon in Turkey. It seeks to analyse the impact of the revision of primary school curriculum on the demand for private tutoring. It also outlines various academic, economic and social implications of private tutoring. Based on interviews with school

Area-wide management approach for tarnished plant bug in the Mississippi Delta

Science.gov (United States)

The tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris (Palisot de Beauvois), is the major insect pest of cotton, Gossypium hirsutum (L.), within the Mid-South region. From 2001 to 2012, the tarnished plant bug has been the number one insect pest of cotton in Louisiana and Mississippi in eleven and nine of those...

Rose garden promises of intelligent tutoring systems: Blossom or thorn

Science.gov (United States)

Shute, Valerie J.

1991-01-01

Intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) have been in existence for over a decade. However, few controlled evaluation studies have been conducted comparing the effectiveness of these systems to more traditional instruction methods. Two main promises of ITSs are examined: (1) Engender more effective and efficient learning in relation to traditional formats; and (2) Reduce the range of learning outcome measures where a majority of individuals are elevated to high performance levels. Bloom (1984) has referred to these as the two sigma problem; to achieve two standard deviation improvements with tutoring over traditional instruction methods. Four ITSs are discussed in relation to the two promises. These tutors have undergone systematic, controlled evaluations: (1) The LISP tutor (Anderson Farrell and Sauers, 1984); (2) Smithtown (Shute and Glaser, in press); (3) Sherlock (Lesgold, Lajoie, Bunzo and Eggan, 1990); and (4) The Pascal ITS (Bonar, Cunningham, Beatty and Well, 1988). Results show that these four tutors do accelerate learning with no degradation in final outcome. Suggestions for improvements to the design and evaluation of ITSs are discussed.

Tutoring electronic troubleshooting in a simulated maintenance work environment

Science.gov (United States)

Gott, Sherrie P.

1987-01-01

A series of intelligent tutoring systems, or intelligent maintenance simulators, is being developed based on expert and novice problem solving data. A graded series of authentic troubleshooting problems provides the curriculum, and adaptive instructional treatments foster active learning in trainees who engage in extensive fault isolation practice and thus in conditionalizing what they know. A proof of concept training study involving human tutoring was conducted as a precursor to the computer tutors to assess this integrated, problem based approach to task analysis and instruction. Statistically significant improvements in apprentice technicians' troubleshooting efficiency were achieved after approximately six hours of training.

ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS CONTENTS IN BOTTOM SEDIMENTS OF BUG RIVER

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Elżbieta Skorbiłowicz

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The development of industry, agriculture, and transport contributes to an increased environmental pollution by heavy metals. The aim of the study was preliminary assessment of the contents of selected metals (lead, cobalt, copper, chromium, cadmium and nickel in the sediments of Bug river. The study comprised part of the river flowing through Poland. It was found that the Bug river sediments are not contaminated in respect to the content of tested metals. Based on the analysis of the study results, these metals can be lined up in the following order: Cr > Pb > Cu > Ni > Co > Cd. Statistical analysis showed that copper and chromium occur in Bug river sediments in forms bindings with organic matter in majority of cases. The granulometric analysis of sediments from Bug river revealed the largest percentage of two fractions: 1.0–0.2 mm with average of 47.7 ± 19.77% and 0.2–0.1 mm with average of 20.6 ± 7.7%. These are the dominant fractions with the accumulation of metals in river sediments, which has been confirmed by statistical analysis.

Toxicities of Selected Essential Oils, Silicone Oils, and Paraffin Oil against the Common Bed Bug (Hemiptera: Cimicidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Zha, Chen; Wang, Changlu; Li, Andrew

2018-02-09

The common bed bug [Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)] and tropical bed bug [Cimex hemipterus F. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)] resurged in the United States and many other countries over the past decades. The need for safe and effective bed bug control products propelled the development of numerous 'green insecticides', mostly with essential oils listed as active ingredients. Various inorganic and organic oils also were used for bed bug management. However, there are no published studies on their toxicities against bed bugs. In this study, we screened 18 essential oils, three silicone oils, and paraffin oil (C5-20 paraffins) for their toxicities against bed bugs. All the oils exhibited insecticidal activity in topical assays. Their toxicities varied significantly; all of the evaluated essential oils were less effective than silicone oils and paraffin oil. The LD50 values of the most effective essential oil (blood orange), paraffin oil, and the most effective silicone oil (dodecamethylpentasiloxane) are 0.184 ± 0.018, 0.069 ± 0.012, and 0.036 ± 0.005 mg per bug, respectively. Direct spray of 1% water solution of 3-[hydroxy (polyethyleneoxy) propyl] heptamethyltrisiloxane, the only silicone oil that mixes well with water, resulted in 92% bed bug mortality after 1 d. Results of this study indicate silicone oils and paraffin oil have the potential to be used as safer alternative bed bug control materials. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Intelligent tutoring system for clinical reasoning skill acquisition in dental students.

Science.gov (United States)

Suebnukarn, Siriwan

2009-10-01

Learning clinical reasoning is an important core activity of the modern dental curriculum. This article describes an intelligent tutoring system (ITS) for clinical reasoning skill acquisition. The system is designed to provide an experience that emulates that of live human-tutored problem-based learning (PBL) sessions as much as possible, while at the same time permitting the students to participate collaboratively from disparate locations. The system uses Bayesian networks to model individual student knowledge and activity, as well as that of the group. Tutoring algorithms use the models to generate tutoring hints. The system incorporates a multimodal interface that integrates text and graphics so as to provide a rich communication channel between the students and the system, as well as among students in the group. Comparison of learning outcomes shows that student clinical reasoning gains from the ITS are similar to those obtained from human-tutored sessions.

Can tutoring improve performance on a reasoning task under deadline conditions?

Science.gov (United States)

Osman, Magda

2007-03-01

The present study examined the effectiveness of a tutoring technique that has been used to identify and address participants' misunderstandings in Wason's selection task. In particular, the study investigated whether the technique would lead to improvements in performance when the task was presented in a deadline format (a condition in which time restrictions are imposed). In Experiment 1, the effects of tutoring on performance were compared in free time (conditions in which no time restrictions are imposed) and deadline task formats. In Experiment 2, improvements in performance were studied in deadline task formats, in which the tutoring and test phases were separated by an interval of 1 day. The results suggested that tutoring improved performance on the selection task under deadline and in free time conditions. Additionally, the study showed that participants made errors because they had misinterpreted the task. With tutoring, they were able to modify their initial misunderstandings.

Identifying and Describing Tutor Archetypes: The Pragmatist, the Architect, and the Surveyor

Science.gov (United States)

Harootunian, Jeff A.; Quinn, Robert J.

2008-01-01

In this article, the authors identify and anecdotally describe three tutor archetypes: the pragmatist, the architect, and the surveyor. These descriptions, based on observations of remedial mathematics tutors at a land-grant university, shed light on a variety of philosophical beliefs regarding and pedagogical approaches to tutoring. An analysis…

What a Difference a Label Makes: Positioning and Response in an Afterschool Tutoring Program

Science.gov (United States)

McCloskey, Erin; Cann, Colette N.

2013-01-01

In this qualitative case study, we used the framework of positioning to show how college-age tutors and their middle school tutees interact in an afterschool tutoring setting with regard to ability. The authors show how educational tracking and understandings of disability permeated tutoring spaces and influence tutors' instructional decisions.…

Electronic Algebra and Calculus Tutor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Larissa Fradkin

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Modern undergraduates join science and engineering courses with poorer mathematical background than most contemporaries of the current faculty had when they were freshers. The problem is very acute in the United Kingdom but more and more countries adopt less resource intensive models of teaching and the problem spreads. University tutors and lecturers spend more and more time covering the basics. However, most of them still rely on traditional methods of delivery which presuppose that learners have a good memory and considerable time to practice, so that they can memorize disjointed facts and discover for themselves various connections between the underlying concepts. These suppositions are particularly unrealistic when dealing with a large number of undergraduates who are ordinary learners with limited mathematics background. The first author has developed a teaching system that allows such adult learners achieve relatively deep learning of mathematics – and remarkably quickly – through a teacher-guided (often called Socratic dialog, which aims at the frequent reinforcement of basic mathematical abstractions through Eulerian sequencing. These ideas have been applied to create a prototype of a Cognitive Mathematics Tutoring System aimed at teaching basic mathematics to University freshers., an electronic Personal Algebra and Calculus Tutor (e- PACT.

Online tutoring procedure for research project supervision: management, organization and key elements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antònia Darder Mesquida

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Research project tutoring appears as a crucial element for teaching; it is a planned action based on the relationship between a tutor and a student. This paper presents the findings of a design and development research which has as its main aim to create an organization system for the tutoring of online research projects. That system seeks to facilitate the tutoring and supervision task with trainee researchers, providing guidance for its management and instruments for its implementation. The main conclusions arising from this research derive from considering the need to offer a solution to the problem of distance research project supervision and has materialized in organization and sequencing through a model about the variables that influence the research project tutoring problem.

Affective feedback in a tutoring system for procedural tasks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heylen, Dirk K.J.; André, E.; Vissers, M.; Dybkjaer, L.; Minker, W.; op den Akker, Hendrikus J.A.; Heisterkamp, P.; Nijholt, Antinus

2004-01-01

We discuss the affective aspects of tutoring dialogues in an ITS -called INES- that helps students to practice nursing tasks using a haptic device and a virtual environment. Special attention is paid to affective control in the tutoring process by means of selecting the appropriate feedback, taking

Student Modeling in an Intelligent Tutoring System

Science.gov (United States)

1996-12-17

Multi-Agent Architecture." Advances in Artificial Intelligence : Proceedings of the 12 th Brazilian Symposium on Aritificial Intelligence , edited by...STUDENT MODELING IN AN INTELLIGENT TUTORING SYSTEM THESIS Jeremy E. Thompson Captain, USAF AFIT/GCS/ENG/96D-27 DIMTVMON* fCKAJWINT A Appr"v*d t=i...Air Force Base, Ohio AFIT/GCS/ENG/96D-27 STUDENT MODELING IN AN INTELLIGENT TUTORING SYSTEM THESIS Jeremy E. Thompson Captain, USAF AFIT/GCS/ENG/96D

An Intelligent Tutoring System for Nondestructive Testing Training

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, J. K.; Koh, S. N. [Joong Ang Inspection Co., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kim, M. K.; Shim, Y. J. [Ajou University, Suwon (Korea, Republic of)

1998-02-15

This paper is written to introduce a multimedia tutoring system for nondestructive testing using personal computer. Nondestructive testing, one of the chief methods for inspecting welds and many other components, is very difficult for the NDT inspectors to understand its technical basis without a wide experience. And it is necessary for considerable repeated education and training for keeping their knowledge. The tutoring system that can simulate NDT works is suggested to solve the above problem based on reasonable condition. The tutoring system shows basic theories of nondestructive testing in a book-style with video images and hyper-links, and it offers practices, in which users can simulate the testing equipment. The book-style and simulation practices provide effective and individual environments for learning nondestructive testing

An Intelligent Tutoring System for Nondestructive Testing Training

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, J. K.; Koh, S. N.; Kim, M. K.; Shim, Y. J.

1998-01-01

This paper is written to introduce a multimedia tutoring system for nondestructive testing using personal computer. Nondestructive testing, one of the chief methods for inspecting welds and many other components, is very difficult for the NDT inspectors to understand its technical basis without a wide experience. And it is necessary for considerable repeated education and training for keeping their knowledge. The tutoring system that can simulate NDT works is suggested to solve the above problem based on reasonable condition. The tutoring system shows basic theories of nondestructive testing in a book-style with video images and hyper-links, and it offers practices, in which users can simulate the testing equipment. The book-style and simulation practices provide effective and individual environments for learning nondestructive testing

Peer tutoring program for academic success of returning nursing students.

Science.gov (United States)

Bryer, Jennifer

2012-01-01

High attrition rates among students in associate degree nursing programs are a concern for faculty, administrators, and students. Programs offering academic and emotional support for students at risk for failing a clinical course may decrease attrition rates and improve academic performance. A peer tutoring program was developed for returning nursing students who were unsuccessful in a previous clinical course. Peer tutors met with returning students weekly to review course work, complete case studies and practice NCLEX questions. Trusting, supportive relationships developed among students and a significant increase in grades was noted at the end of the course for 79% of students. Implementation of peer tutoring was beneficial for returning students, tutors, and the nursing program and may be valuable in other courses where academic achievement is a concern.

Evidence of environmental and vertical transmission of Burkholderia symbionts in the oriental chinch bug, Cavelerius saccharivorus (Heteroptera: Blissidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Itoh, Hideomi; Aita, Manabu; Nagayama, Atsushi; Meng, Xian-Ying; Kamagata, Yoichi; Navarro, Ronald; Hori, Tomoyuki; Ohgiya, Satoru; Kikuchi, Yoshitomo

2014-10-01

The vertical transmission of symbiotic microorganisms is omnipresent in insects, while the evolutionary process remains totally unclear. The oriental chinch bug, Cavelerius saccharivorus (Heteroptera: Blissidae), is a serious sugarcane pest, in which symbiotic bacteria densely populate the lumen of the numerous tubule-like midgut crypts that the chinch bug develops. Cloning and sequence analyses of the 16S rRNA genes revealed that the crypts were dominated by a specific group of bacteria belonging to the genus Burkholderia of the Betaproteobacteria. The Burkholderia sequences were distributed into three distinct clades: the Burkholderia cepacia complex (BCC), the plant-associated beneficial and environmental (PBE) group, and the stinkbug-associated beneficial and environmental group (SBE). Diagnostic PCR revealed that only one of the three groups of Burkholderia was present in ∼89% of the chinch bug field populations tested, while infections with multiple Burkholderia groups within one insect were observed in only ∼10%. Deep sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene confirmed that the Burkholderia bacteria specifically colonized the crypts and were dominated by one of three Burkholderia groups. The lack of phylogenetic congruence between the symbiont and the host population strongly suggested host-symbiont promiscuity, which is probably caused by environmental acquisition of the symbionts by some hosts. Meanwhile, inspections of eggs and hatchlings by diagnostic PCR and egg surface sterilization demonstrated that almost 30% of the hatchlings vertically acquire symbiotic Burkholderia via symbiont-contaminated egg surfaces. The mixed strategy of symbiont transmission found in the oriental chinch bug might be an intermediate stage in evolution from environmental acquisition to strict vertical transmission in insects. Copyright © 2014, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Bed Bugs Appearance and Life Cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Identify these bugs accurately, from egg to nymph to adult. Adults are about the size of an apple seed, brown and oval-shaped, and either flat or balloon-like depending on how recently fed. Nymphs are a bit smaller and translucent or whitish yellow.

Interactive Tutoring in Blended Studies: Hindrances and Solutions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Asim Ismail Ilyas (Al-Titinchy

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This paper distinguishes between traditional teaching known as lecturing (the teacher centered approach; and tutoring (the contemporary technology-oriented interactive teaching/learning approach. It is based on the implementation of tutoring strategies of ‘blended studies’  at the Arab Open University. It investigates the application of modern interactive teaching/learning strategies, specifying some hindering factors in the AOU-Jordan Branch context. The factors include four variables: tutors, students, course material and assessment. The paper is based on qualitative research in terms of a real teaching/leaning context, using both observation and conversation with learners, besides the use of some quantitative data retrieved from a questionnaire in which learners’ views are sought regarding a number of relevant matters. A number of suggested solutions related to each of the hindering factors are presented, which if applied, may secure shifting the balance of the teaching/learning process to a more interactive technology-based tutoring level, which in turn will enhance learners’ opportunities for the attainment of better academic standards, and secure a higher degree of achievement of the shared educational goals of learners and the educational institution they study in.

Estimating the Impact of Private Tutoring on Academic Performance: Primary Students in Sri Lanka

Science.gov (United States)

Cole, Rachel

2017-01-01

Worldwide private tutoring is documented extensively, but its impact is unclear. I estimate the impact of tutoring on performance to assess the degree to which tutoring is a vehicle of educational stratification in Sri Lanka. I find that on average, five months of tutoring has no impact on Year 5 students' exam scores. I produce suggestive…

What Do Distance Language Tutors Say about Teacher Motivation?

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Junhong

2014-01-01

Research into motivation in education mainly centres on students' learning motivation. This article reports on an interview study of teacher motivation with the aim of investigating the effects of student-related factors and tutors' personal factors on the motivation of language tutors in the distance learning context. Findings from the study…

Household Expenditures on Private Tutoring: Emerging Evidence from Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Kenayathulla, Husaina Banu

2013-01-01

Private tutoring has been a burgeoning phenomenon in Malaysia for decades. This study examines the determinants of private tutoring expenditures in Malaysia using the 2004/2005 Household Expenditures Survey and applies hurdle regression models to the data. The results indicate that total household expenditures, household head's level of education,…

After-School Tutoring and the Distribution of Student Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Min-Hsiung

2013-01-01

As more primary and secondary students worldwide seek after-school tutoring in academic subjects, concerns are being raised about whether after-school tutoring can raise average test scores without widening the variability in student performance, and whether students of certain ability levels may benefit more than others from after-school…

Bed Bug Clearinghouse by Type of Resource

Science.gov (United States)

This information is to help states, communities, and consumers prevent and control bed bug infestations. These brochures, fact sheets, manuals, posters, checklists, videos, and more provide guidance such as hotel room inspection and pesticide safety.

Online Tutoring Procedure for Research Project Supervision: Management, Organization and Key Elements

Science.gov (United States)

Darder Mesquida, Antònia; Pérez Garcias, Adolfina

2015-01-01

Research project tutoring appears as a crucial element for teaching; it is a planned action based on the relationship between a tutor and a student. This paper presents the findings of a design and development research which has as its main aim to create an organization system for the tutoring of online research projects. That system seeks to…

Effects of tutor-related behaviours on the process of problem-based learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Chng, Esther; Yew, Elaine H J; Schmidt, Henk G

2011-10-01

Tutors in a Problem-Based Learning (PBL) curriculum are thought to play active roles in guiding students to develop frameworks for use in the construction of knowledge. This implies that both subject-matter expertise and the ability of tutors to facilitate the learning process must be important in helping students learn. This study examines the behavioural effects of tutors in terms of subject-matter expertise, social congruence and cognitive congruence on students' learning process and on their final achievement. The extent of students' learning at each PBL phase was estimated by tracking the number of relevant concepts recalled at the end of each learning phase, while student achievement was based on students' ability to describe and elaborate upon the relationship between relevant concepts learned. By using Analysis of Covariance, social congruence of the tutor was found to have a significant influence on learning in each PBL phase while all of the tutor-related behaviours had a significant impact on student achievement. The results suggest that the ability of tutors to communicate informally with students and hence create a less threatening learning environment that promotes a free flow exchange of ideas, has a greater impact on learning at each of the PBL phases as compared to tutors' subject-matter expertise and their ability to explain concepts in a way that is easily understood by students. The data presented indicates that these tutor-related behaviours are determinants of learning in a PBL curriculum, with social congruence having a greater influence on learning in the different PBL phases.

Degree Day Requirements for Kudzu Bug (Hemiptera: Plataspidae), a Pest of Soybeans.

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, Jessica I; Lamp, William O

2018-04-02

Understanding the phenology of a new potential pest is fundamental for the development of a management program. Megacopta cribraria Fabricius (Hemiptera: Plataspidae), kudzu bug, is a pest of soybeans first detected in the United States in 2009 and in Maryland in 2013. We observed the phenology of kudzu bug life stages in Maryland, created a Celsius degree-day (CDD) model for development, and characterized the difference between microhabitat and ambient temperatures of both kudzu, Pueraria montana (Lour.) Merr. (Fabales: Fabaceae) and soybeans, Glycine max (L.) Merrill (Fabales: Fabaceae). In 2014, low population numbers yielded limited resolution from field phenology observations. We observed kudzu bug populations persisting within Maryland; but between 2013 and 2016, populations were low compared to populations in the southeastern United States. Based on the degree-day model, kudzu bug eggs require 80 CDD at a minimum temperature of 14°C to hatch. Nymphs require 545 CDD with a minimum temperature of 16°C for development. The CDD model matches field observations when factoring a biofix date of April 1 and a minimum preoviposition period of 17 d. The model suggests two full generations per year in Maryland. Standard air temperature monitors do not affect model predictions for pest management, as microhabitat temperature differences did not show a clear trend between kudzu and soybeans. Ultimately, producers can predict the timing of kudzu bug life stages with the CDD model for the use of timing management plans in soybean fields.

Peer Tutoring as a Remedial Measure for Slow Learners in a Medical School

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ray (Arora Suranjana

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: A Slow Learner (SL is one who has the ability to learn necessary academic skills but at a rate and depth below average of the same age peers. Aims: To identify SL we have to judge them not just by their grade level, but by the fact that they master skills slowly, have difficulty following multistep directives, live in the present and do not have long term goals. The remedial measures for these SL were repetition, peer tutoring, enhancing their self-esteem and improve confidence. With correct monitoring, support and feedback from a teacher facilitator peer tutoring can provide deeper learning, reduce dropout, and improve social behavior. Objective: The aim was to identify SL and to peer tutor them. Material and Methods: In a group of 106 students in the first year of MBBS in a college in Mauritius 20 students were identified as SL, out of the other 86 students 2 to 3 students were selected as peer tutors. The sample size on which the questionnaire was used to determine slow learners were 106 out of which 20 were found to be slow learners. The peer tutors were selected among the 106 students. The facilitator trained the tutors. Conclusion: In our Institute we found an alarming 15-18% of SL. The SL responded positively to the peer tutoring and a significant number improved their academic performance. Peer tutoring has significant cognitive gains for both tutor and tutees. Peer tutoring improves selfconfidence, academic achievement, improves their attitude towards the subject matter and encourages greater persistence in completing tasks. Identifying SL has many pitfalls as we should confirm that they are not 'reluctant' or 'struggling' learners but SL.

Stress Tolerance of Bed Bugs: A Review of Factors That Cause Trauma to Cimex lectularius and C. Hemipterus

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Joshua B. Benoit

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Recent emergence of bed bugs (Cimex spp. has prompted a significant expansion of research devoted to this pest. The ability to survive and recover from stress has significant implications on the distribution and survival of insects, and bed bugs are no exception. Research on bed bug stress tolerance has shown considerable progress and necessitates a review on this topic. Bed bugs have an extraordinary ability to resist dehydration between bloodmeals, and this represents a critical factor allowing their prolonged survival when no host is available. High relative humidities are detrimental to bed bugs, leading to reduced survival in comparison to those held at lower relative humidities. Continual exposure of bed bugs, eggs and mobile stages, to temperatures below freezing and short term exposure (=1 h to temperatures below −16 to −18 °C results in mortality. The upper thermal limit for short term exposure of eggs, nymphs and adults is between 40–45 °C for the common (Cimex lectularius and tropical (C. hemipterus bed bugs. Long-term exposure to temperatures above 35 °C results in significant reduction in survival of mobile bed bugs. Eggs for C. lectularius and C. hemipterus are no longer viable when held below 10 °C or above 37 °C throughout embryogenesis. Blood feeding, although necessary for survival and reproduction, is discussed as a stress due to thermal and osmotic fluctuations that result from ingesting a warm bloodmeal from a vertebrate host. Cold, heat, water stress and blood feeding prompted the expression of heat shock proteins (Hsps. Pesticide application is a common human-induced stress for urban pests, and recent studies have documented pesticide resistance in many bed bug populations. High levels of traumatic insemination (mating of bed bugs has been linked to reduced survival and fecundity along with possibly exposing individuals to microbial infections after cuticular penetration by the paramere (=male reproductive organ

Peer Tutoring: An Evaluation of the Relative Cognitive Benefits.

Science.gov (United States)

McKellar, Nancy A.

The relative effectiveness of tutoring for both partners was examined by comparing tutoring with other learning activities that differed either in the amount of exposure to the learning materials or the presence of a helping relationship or both. The subjects were 160 undergraduates who were evaluated on their acquisition of Esperanto. Subjects…

The Effectiveness of Private Tutoring: Students' Perceptions in Comparison with Mainstream Schooling in Hong Kong

Science.gov (United States)

Zhan, Shengli; Bray, Mark; Wang, Dan; Lykins, Chad; Kwo, Ora

2013-01-01

This paper examines Hong Kong students' perceptions on the effectiveness of private supplementary tutoring relative to mainstream schooling. Drawing on survey and interview data, it shows that large proportions of secondary school students receive private tutoring. Students generally perceive private tutoring and private tutors to be more…

Real-Time Measurement of Volatile Chemicals Released by Bed Bugs during Mating Activities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kilpinen, Ole Østerlund; Liu, Dezhao; Adamsen, Anders Peter

2012-01-01

In recent years, bed bug (Hemiptera: Cimicidae) problems have increased dramatically in many parts of the world, leading to a renewed interest in their chemical ecology. Most studies of bed bug semiochemicals have been based on the collection of volatiles over a period of time followed by chemical...

Language Analysis and Generation in Algebra Tutorial Dialogues for Language-Based Intelligent Tutoring Systems

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Kim, Jung

2004-01-01

The North Carolina A&T State University algebra tutoring dialogue project collects and analyzes algebra tutoring dialogues with the aim of describing tutoring strategies and language with enough rigor that they may...

Multiple model mimicry and feeding behavior of the spider web-inhabiting damsel bug, Arachnocoris berytoides Uhler (Hemiptera: Nabidae), from Puerto Rico

Science.gov (United States)

Javier E. Mercado; Jorge A. Santiago-Blay

2015-01-01

The Neotropical genus, Arachnocoris Scott groups thirteen species of specialized spider web-inhabiting damsel bugs (Nabidae) distributed from Panama to Brazil and the West Indies. We present new information on the web behavior of A. berytoides Uhler from Puerto Rico. Three different life stages were observed on the spider webs, suggesting this species likely depends on...

Peer Tutoring Effects on Omani Students' English Self-Concept

Science.gov (United States)

Alrajhi, Marwa N.; Aldhafri, Said S.

2015-01-01

Based on the social cognitive learning theory (1997), peer learning can be viewed as an effective way of enhancing learning. In this study, peer tutoring, a form of peer learning, was examined. The current study investigated the influence of a peer tutoring program implemented at Sultan Qaboos University on students' English self-concept. 125…

Providing Formative Assessment to Students Solving Multipath Engineering Problems with Complex Arrangements of Interacting Parts: An Intelligent Tutor Approach

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Steif, Paul S.; Fu, Luoting; Kara, Levent Burak

2016-01-01

Problems faced by engineering students involve multiple pathways to solution. Students rarely receive effective formative feedback on handwritten homework. This paper examines the potential for computer-based formative assessment of student solutions to multipath engineering problems. In particular, an intelligent tutor approach is adopted and…

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS): The Effectiveness of an Afterschool Environmental Science Program for Increasing Female Students' Interest in Science Careers

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Tyler-Wood, Tandra; Ellison, Amber; Lim, Okyoung; Periathiruvadi, Sita

2012-02-01

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS) was an afterschool program for 4th and 5th grade girls that provided authentic learning experiences in environmental science as well as valuable female mentoring opportunities in an effort to increase participants' academic achievement in science. BUGS participants demonstrated significantly greater amounts of gain in science knowledge as measured by the Iowa Test of Basic Skills in Science (ITBS-S). The original BUGS participants and contrasts have now completed high school and entered college, allowing researchers to assess the long-term impact of the BUGS program. Fourteen former BUGS participants completed two instruments to assess their perceptions of science and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. Their results were compared to four contrast groups composed entirely of females: 12 former BUGS contrasts, 10 college science majors, 10 non-science majors, and 9 current STEM professionals. Results indicate that BUGS participants have higher perceptions of science careers than BUGS contrasts. There were no significant differences between BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM professionals in their perceptions of science and STEM careers, whereas the BUGS contrast group was significantly lower than BUGS participants, Science Majors, and STEM Professionals. Additional results and implications are discussed within.

Association of Verde plant bug, Creontiades signatus (Hemiptera: Miridae), with cotton boll rot

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Cotton along the Gulf Coast of south Texas has experienced loss from cotton boll rot especially during the last 10 to 15 years, and stink bugs and plant bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae and Miridae) that feed on cotton bolls have been suspected in introducing the disease. A replicated grower field surv...

El tutor como amigo y guía del educando The tutor as a friend and guide of the student

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Reinaldo Lóriga Álvarez

2007-06-01

Full Text Available La universalización de la educación superior es un proceso continuo de transformaciones, iniciado con el triunfo de la Revolución en el año 1959, y dirigido a la ampliación de posibilidades y oportunidades de acceso a la universidad y de multiplicación y extensión de los conocimientos, con lo cual se contribuye a la formación de una mayor cultura general integral de la población y a un incremento sostenido de equidad y justicia social en nuestra sociedad, se realizó un estudio analítico cualitativo con el objetivo de conocer el trabajo del tutor en el proyecto policlínico universitario en San Luis año 2006/2007, utilizando como muestra el claustro profesoral y los estudiantes pertenecientes a la SUM, obteniendo como resultado que existen deficiencias en el modo de actuación del tutor en las áreas estudiadas que van desde los criterios de selección al no existir un modelo; la falta de conocimientos acerca de las funciones del tutor sumado a la falta de reconocimiento de su labor, lo que aparece reflejado en los estudiantes de pregrado y postrado.The universalization of High Medical Education is a continuing process of transformation that started with the triumph of the Revolution in 1959 aimed at extending the possibilities and opportunities of enrolment at universities as well as the spread of knowledge, favoring a high level of culture in the population and an increase of equity and social justice in our Society. An analytical qualitative study was carried out in order to know the role of the tutor at the University Out-patient Project in San Luis Municipality in 2006-2007, taking the teaching staff and the students enrolled at this University Venue as a sample. Some deficiencies were observed in the role of tutor on the areas studied : from the choice criteria due to the non-existence of a model to follow, lack of knowledge and recognition of the tutor's role, being these difficulties reflected on undergraduate and postgraduate

Effectiveness of Intelligent Tutoring Systems: A Meta-Analytic Review

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Kulik, James A.; Fletcher, J. D.

2016-01-01

This review describes a meta-analysis of findings from 50 controlled evaluations of intelligent computer tutoring systems. The median effect of intelligent tutoring in the 50 evaluations was to raise test scores 0.66 standard deviations over conventional levels, or from the 50th to the 75th percentile. However, the amount of improvement found in…

Interactions among Carbon Dioxide, Heat, and Chemical Lures in Attracting the Bed Bug, Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae

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Narinderpal Singh

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Commercial bed bug (Cimex lectularius L. monitors incorporating carbon dioxide (CO2, heat, and chemical lures are being used for detecting bed bugs; however, there are few reported studies on the effectiveness of chemical lures in bed bug monitors and the interactions among chemical lure, CO2, and heat. We screened 12 chemicals for their attraction to bed bugs and evaluated interactions among chemical lures, CO2, and heat. The chemical lure mixture consisting of nonanal, 1-octen-3-ol, spearmint oil, and coriander Egyptian oil was found to be most attractive to bed bugs and significantly increased the trap catches in laboratory bioassays. Adding this chemical lure mixture when CO2 was present increased the trap catches compared with traps baited with CO2 alone, whereas adding heat did not significantly increase trap catches when CO2 was present. Results suggest a combination of chemical lure and CO2 is essential for designing effective bed bug monitors.

Attraction of stink bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) nymphs to Euschistus aggregation pheromone in the field

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Phytophagous stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) are primary pests in most fruit, vegetable, grain, and row crops worldwide. Pheromones have been identified and synthesized for several species of economically important stink bug pests. When yellow pyramid traps are baited with lures containing thes...

Adjacent habitat influence on stink bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) densities and the associated damage at field corn and soybean edges.

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Venugopal, P Dilip; Coffey, Peter L; Dively, Galen P; Lamp, William O

2014-01-01

The local dispersal of polyphagous, mobile insects within agricultural systems impacts pest management. In the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, stink bugs, especially the invasive Halyomorpha halys (Stål 1855), contribute to economic losses across a range of cropping systems. Here, we characterized the density of stink bugs along the field edges of field corn and soybean at different study sites. Specifically, we examined the influence of adjacent managed and natural habitats on the density of stink bugs in corn and soybean fields at different distances along transects from the field edge. We also quantified damage to corn grain, and to soybean pods and seeds, and measured yield in relation to the observed stink bug densities at different distances from field edge. Highest density of stink bugs was limited to the edge of both corn and soybean fields. Fields adjacent to wooded, crop and building habitats harbored higher densities of stink bugs than those adjacent to open habitats. Damage to corn kernels and to soybean pods and seeds increased with stink bug density in plots and was highest at the field edges. Stink bug density was also negatively associated with yield per plant in soybean. The spatial pattern of stink bugs in both corn and soybeans, with significant edge effects, suggests the use of pest management strategies for crop placement in the landscape, as well as spatially targeted pest suppression within fields.

Adjacent habitat influence on stink bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae densities and the associated damage at field corn and soybean edges.

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P Dilip Venugopal

Full Text Available The local dispersal of polyphagous, mobile insects within agricultural systems impacts pest management. In the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, stink bugs, especially the invasive Halyomorpha halys (Stål 1855, contribute to economic losses across a range of cropping systems. Here, we characterized the density of stink bugs along the field edges of field corn and soybean at different study sites. Specifically, we examined the influence of adjacent managed and natural habitats on the density of stink bugs in corn and soybean fields at different distances along transects from the field edge. We also quantified damage to corn grain, and to soybean pods and seeds, and measured yield in relation to the observed stink bug densities at different distances from field edge. Highest density of stink bugs was limited to the edge of both corn and soybean fields. Fields adjacent to wooded, crop and building habitats harbored higher densities of stink bugs than those adjacent to open habitats. Damage to corn kernels and to soybean pods and seeds increased with stink bug density in plots and was highest at the field edges. Stink bug density was also negatively associated with yield per plant in soybean. The spatial pattern of stink bugs in both corn and soybeans, with significant edge effects, suggests the use of pest management strategies for crop placement in the landscape, as well as spatially targeted pest suppression within fields.

Peer Tutoring and Gorgias: Acknowledging Aggression in the Writing Center.

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Bokser, Julie A.

2001-01-01

Continues a discussion of critiquing peer tutoring groups by underscoring a typically unacknowledged component: the way in which an emphasis on "peerness" disguises the inherent aggression in tutoring relationships. Defines "peerness" as a complicated relation that involves power and aggression as well as equality. (SG)

A Case Study on Leadership Identity Development of Tutors in a Learning Center

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Crandall, Samantha L.

2017-01-01

The effectiveness of a tutor training program is often only measured by student results rather than tutor outcomes (CRLA, 2016). Experiences in college, such as on-campus employment, greatly contribute to the development of students (Savoca, 2016). However, little research exists on the leadership development of tutors (NADE, 2016). Having a…

Reasons of tutoring Phenomena among Secondary Stage Students

OpenAIRE

Mustafa Ayroutt; Heba hammad

2011-01-01

Problem statement: The purpose of this study was to investigate the reasons of tutoring phenomena among secondary stage students in Amman City as perceived by School Principals. Approach: The sample of the study consisted of (117 male principals and 57 female principals). Results: The evaluations of principals regarding tutoring reasons were high, factors related to students came first, followed by the factors related to the family while the factors related to the cur...

The subjective experience of collaboration in interprofessional tutor teams: A qualitative study

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Weber, Tobias

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Aim: The Center for Interprofessional Training in Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus at the Technische Universität Dresden, Germany, has offered courses covering interprofessional material since the winter semester 2014/15. The unusual feature of these courses is that they are co-taught by peer tutors from medicine and nursing. This study investigates the subjective experiences of these tutors during the collaborative preparation and teaching of these tutorials with the aim of identifying the effects of equal participation in the perceptions and assessments of the other professional group.Method: Semi-structured, guideline-based interviews were held with six randomly selected tutors. The interviews were analyzed using structuring content analysis.Results: The results show that collaborative work led to reflection, mostly by the university student tutors, on the attitudes held. However, the co-tutors from each professional group were perceived to different degrees as being representative of those in their profession. Asked to master a shared assignment in a non-clinical context, the members of the different professional groups met on equal footing, even if the medical students had already gathered more teaching experience and thus mostly assumed a mentoring role over the course of working on and realizing the teaching units. The nursing tutors were primarily focused on their role as tutor. Both professional groups emphasized that prior to the collaboration they had an insufficient or no idea about the theoretical knowledge or practical skills of the other professional group. Overall, the project was rated as beneficial, and interprofessional education was endorsed.Conclusion: In the discussion, recommendations based on the insights are made for joint tutor training of both professional groups. According to these recommendations, harmonizing the teaching abilities of all tutors is essential to ensure equality during cooperation

Contribution of Equal-Sign Instruction beyond Word-Problem Tutoring for Third-Grade Students with Mathematics Difficulty.

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Powell, Sarah R; Fuchs, Lynn S

2010-05-01

Elementary school students often misinterpret the equal sign (=) as an operational rather than a relational symbol. Such misunderstanding is problematic because solving equations with missing numbers may be important for higher-order mathematics skills including word problems. Research indicates equal-sign instruction can alter how typically-developing students use the equal sign, but no study has examined effects for students with mathematics difficulty (MD) or how equal-sign instruction contributes to word-problem skill for students with or without MD. The present study assessed the efficacy of equal-sign instruction within word-problem tutoring. Third-grade students with MD (n = 80) were assigned to word-problem tutoring, word-problem tutoring plus equal-sign instruction (combined) tutoring, or no-tutoring control. Combined tutoring produced better improvement on equal sign tasks and open equations compared to the other 2 conditions. On certain forms of word problems, combined tutoring but not word-problem tutoring alone produced better improvement than control. When compared at posttest to 3(rd)-grade students without MD on equal sign tasks and open equations, only combined tutoring students with MD performed comparably.

Teacher Perceptions of an Online Tutoring Program for Elementary Mathematics

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Whetstone, Patti; Clark, Amy; Flake, Mari Wheeler

2014-01-01

This study explores elementary teacher perceptions related to the implementation of an online tutoring program. Teachers were surveyed regarding factors that affected use of the online tutoring program as a supplement to mathematics instruction. Results indicated that teachers overwhelmingly reported positive views of the training and support…

Enhancing Preservice Teachers' Skillsets and Professionalism through Literacy Tutoring Experiences

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Paquette, Kelli R.; Laverick, DeAnna M.

2017-01-01

This qualitative study explores preservice teachers' experiences in a service-learning literacy tutoring program offered at a university with children in grades one through eight. This study examines briefly the history of literacy centers and service-learning, the specific instructional tutoring methods employed by preservice teachers connected…

A web-based adaptive tutor to teach PCR primer design

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Seters, Janneke R.; Wellink, Joan; Tramper, Johannes; Goedhart, Martin J.; Ossevoort, Miriam A.

2012-01-01

When students have varying prior knowledge, personalized instruction is desirable. One way to personalize instruction is by using adaptive e-learning to offer training of varying complexity. In this study, we developed a web-based adaptive tutor to teach PCR primer design: the PCR Tutor. We used

A Web-based Adaptive Tutor to Teach PCR Primer Design

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Seters, van J.R.; Wellink, J.; Tramper, J.; Goedhart, M.J.; Ossevoort, M.A.

2012-01-01

When students have varying prior knowledge, personalized instruction is desirable. One way to personalize instruction is by using adaptive e-learning to offer training of varying complexity. In this study, we developed a web-based adaptive tutor to teach PCR primer design: the PCR Tutor. We used

Courses for tutors in problem-based learning. Current challenges at four Swedish universities

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Helen Susan Setterud

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The key role of the tutor in problem-based learning (PBL is to help students become selfregulated learners. Tutors need training to acquire the necessary facilitating skills for this task. The aim of this article is to describe and discuss how PBL tutor training is currently arranged at four universities in Sweden: Linköping University, Lund Medical Faculty, Uppsala Medical School and Örebro School of Medicine. Moreover, we seek to analyse how the content and format of the tutor training courses correspond to the desired skills and competencies for PBL tutors described in the literature. We draw especially on work coming out of three pioneering universities for PBL: McMaster University, Canada; Maastricht University, The Netherlands; and Linköping University, Sweden. One aim has been to construct a framework for analysis that uses categories specifying the knowledge base, capabilities and skills to support students’ learning processes which characterise the full-fledged PBL tutor. For this framework, we have used the following categories: Knowledge of PBL and pedagogical theories, Personal traits, Student-centeredness, Ability to handle group processes, and Subject knowledge. We collected descriptions of the course design and content from the four universities, and assessed to what extent these categories were represented within the courses. Our results show that all categories inform the course content at all four universities, though the design varies between courses. In summary, we show that the four PBL tutor training courses are all designed to enable participants to experience PBL first-hand both as members of a tutorial group and as tutors. They all also include a theoretical base and offer opportunities for discussion and reflection with peers; however, there are some differences in design between the courses. According to participants, all four courses provide good preparation for the tutor role. Yet, we see a need for the

Los espacios de tutoría en práctica profesional y sus necesidades de fortalecimiento

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Gerardo Ignacio Sánchez Sánchez

2014-05-01

Full Text Available El artículo da cuenta del funcionamiento de la tutoría en práctica profesional, según el reporte de los actores que viven el proceso: estudiantes de pedagogía en Educación Física, General Básica, Parvularia, Historia, Castellano, Matemática, Artes e Inglés de una institución formadora de profesores en la región del Maule, Chile y sus tutores. Participaron 225 estudiantes en práctica y 57 tutores universitarios; metodológicamente asume la modalidad de estudio descriptivo de caso múltiple. Los resultados indican opiniones bastante positivas respecto al sistema de acompañamiento diseñado por la universidad para los estudiantes en práctica profesional y que se concretan con la presencia de un profesional encargado de apoyar las exigencias personales, sociales y profesionales que experimentan los practicantes. Existe una alta valoración de la tutoría en tareas de apoyo a la planificación, la didáctica, la evaluación y la reflexión. Sin embargo, la visión que existe de los desempeños logrados tiende a ser distinta entre los actores. Los practicantes perciben un desempeño que, en términos generales, se sitúa en los niveles de “bastante” y “mucho”, lo cual indicaría que ellos consideran adquiridos los distintos desempeños pedagógicos; en tanto, los tutores sitúan a un porcentaje importante de practicantes en una adquisición más bien parcial o “regular” de los desempeños pedagógicos comprometidos en la formación de un profesor. The article is a report of the actors that have lived the process of practicum and their tutoring sessions. This involves students of pedagogy in physical education, basic general, preschool, history, Spanish, mathematics, arts and English, in a teacher training institution in the region of Maule, Chile and their tutors. 225 students in their practicum process and 57 college tutors participated in this work. The research was in the form of descriptive multiple case study. The

Artificial intelligence and tutoring systems computational and cognitive approaches to the communication of knowledge

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Wenger, Etienne

2014-01-01

Artificial Intelligence and Tutoring Systems: Computational and Cognitive Approaches to the Communication of Knowledge focuses on the cognitive approaches, methodologies, principles, and concepts involved in the communication of knowledge. The publication first elaborates on knowledge communication systems, basic issues, and tutorial dialogues. Concerns cover natural reasoning and tutorial dialogues, shift from local strategies to multiple mental models, domain knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, implicit versus explicit encoding of knowledge, knowledge communication, and practical and theoretic

Milkweed, stink bugs, and Georgia cotton

Science.gov (United States)

In peanut-cotton farmscapes in Georgia, stink bugs, i.e., Nezara viridula (L.)(Say) and Chinavia hilaris (Say), develop in peanut and then disperse at the crop-to-crop interface to feed on fruit in cotton. The main objective of this study was to examine the influence of a habitat of tropical milkwe...

Un modelo de tutoría universitaria para el aprendizaje de materiales instruccionales Um modelo de tutoría universitaria para o aprendizado de materiais de instrução A College Tutoring Model for Learning through the Use of Instructional Materials

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Norma Angélica Ortega-Andrade

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Se exponen los resultados del estudio de un modelo diseñado para atender los problemas relacionados con la comprensión de la lectura y el aprendizaje de materiales instruccionales en estudiantes universitarios, con el apoyo del tutor. En el estudio participaron 59 tutores y 200 estudiantes de la Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo, México. El diseño de la investigación fue cuasiexperimental, con tres grupos independientes de comparación. Se aplicó el Inventario de Estilos de Aprendizaje y Orientación Motivacional (Edaom de Castañeda y Ortega (2004, en un pretest-postest después de la intervención con el modelo durante un semestre. Los resultados indican, de manera moderada, que la intervención del tutor contribuyó a mejorar el desempeño de los estudiantes, en comparación con los otros dos grupos, y también que para el aprendizaje de materiales instruccionales se requiere entrenamiento por parte del tutor.Apresenta os resultados do estudo de um modelo concebido para resolver problemas relacionados com a compreensão de leitura e o aprendizado de materiais de instrução em estudantes universitarios com o apoio de tutores. O estudo envolveu 59 professores e 200 estudantes da Universidad Autónoma do Estado de Hidalgo no México. O desenho da pesquisa foi quase-experimental, com três grupos independentes para comparação. Nós aplicamos o Inventario de Estilos de Aprendizagem e Orientação Motivacional (Edaom de Castañeda e Ortega (2004 em um pré-teste-pós-teste após a intervenção com o modelo por um semestre. Os resultados indicam moderadamente que a intervenção do tutor ajudou para melhorar o desempenho dos alunos em comparação com os outros dois grupos, bem como que a aprendizagem de material didático necessita treinamento pelo tutor.Presents the results of a study on a model designed to address problems related to reading comprehension and learning with instructional materials among college students who

Tutors' Influence on Distance Language Students' Learning Motivation: Voices from Learners and Tutors

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Xiao, Junhong

2012-01-01

Teachers' influence on students' learning motivation is a well-researched topic. Nevertheless, the majority of such studies are situated in the conventional learning context despite the rapid growth of distance language learning. This study set out to investigate tutors' influence on students' learning motivation in the Chinese distance language…

Bug breakfast in the bulletin: human papilloma virus.

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Wallace, Cate; Weisberg, Edith; McCaffery, Kirsten

2007-01-01

The Bug Breakfast topic for October was Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). The presenters covered the epidemiology of HPV, the newly introduced HPV vaccine and social and psychological issues relating to HPV vaccination.

Teachers Engaging Parents as Tutors to Improve Oral Reading Fluency

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Kupzyk, Sara S.

2012-01-01

This dissertation examined the application of evidence-based tutoring for oral reading fluency (ORF) to a natural setting, using teachers as parent trainers. Measures used to determine the impact of parent tutoring included treatment integrity, student reading outcomes, attitudes towards involvement and reading, and social validity. Six teachers…

Constructing Adult Literacies at a Local Literacy Tutor-Training Program

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Roderick, Ryan

2013-01-01

This study investigates how literacy was constructed at an adult literacy organization's volunteer tutor-training program. By drawing on qualitative analysis of training texts used during training, such as training evaluations, and data gathered from interviews with experienced tutors, it is possible to identify the assumptions about literacy…

Verde plant bug is associated with cottong boll rot in South Texas cotton

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Verde plant bug was the dominant boll-feeding sucking bug species (>98% of insects collected using a beat bucket) from peak to late bloom in cotton fields near the coast along the Coastal Bend of South Texas, from Port Lavaca to the Lower Rio qrande Valley in 2010 and 2011. It was common in fields w...

Voluntary undergraduate technical skills training course to prepare students for clerkship assignment: tutees' and tutors' perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Blohm, Mats; Krautter, Markus; Lauter, Jan; Huber, Julia; Weyrich, Peter; Herzog, Wolfgang; Jünger, Jana; Nikendei, Christoph

2014-04-04

Skills lab training has become a widespread tool in medical education, and nowadays, skills labs are ubiquitous among medical faculties across the world. An increasingly prevalent didactic approach in skills lab teaching is peer-assisted learning (PAL), which has been shown to be not only effective, but can be considered to be on a par with faculty staff-led training. The aim of the study is to determine whether voluntary preclinical skills teaching by peer tutors is a feasible method for preparing medical students for effective workplace learning in clerkships and to investigate both tutees' and tutors' attitudes towards such an intervention. A voluntary clerkship preparation skills course was designed and delivered. N = 135 pre-clinical medical students visited the training sessions. N = 10 tutors were trained as skills-lab peer tutors. Voluntary clerkship preparation skills courses as well as tutor training were evaluated by acceptance ratings and pre-post self-assessment ratings. Furthermore, qualitative analyses of skills lab tutors' attitudes towards the course were conducted following principles of grounded theory. Results show that a voluntary clerkship preparation skills course is in high demand, is highly accepted and leads to significant changes in self-assessment ratings. Regarding qualitative analysis of tutor statements, clerkship preparation skills courses were considered to be a helpful and necessary asset to preclinical medical education, which benefits from the tutors' own clerkship experiences and a high standardization of training. Tutor training is also highly accepted and regarded as an indispensable tool for peer tutors. Our study shows that the demand for voluntary competence-oriented clerkship preparation is high, and a peer tutor-led skills course as well as tutor training is well accepted. The focused didactic approach for tutor training is perceived to be effective in preparing tutors for their teaching activity in this context. A

Effects of School Counselor Supervised Peer Tutoring in Inclusive Settings on Meeting IEP Outcomes of Students with Developmental Disabilities

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Odluyurt, Serhat; Tekin-Iftar, Elif; Ersoy, Gulhan

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of school counselor supervised peer tutoring intervention on meeting IEP outcomes of six inclusion students with developmental disabilities in a public elementary and secondary school. The effectiveness of this intervention was evaluated by using multiple probe design across students.…

Reflexiones sobre la tutoría como función del profesor universitario

OpenAIRE

López Lucas, María del Carmen

2002-01-01

En el artículo se reflexiona sobre la tutoría, los motivos, los ámbitos de aplicación, cómo hacer una tutoría personalizada y cómo la entrevista en la tutoría individual, y por último, se reflexiona sobre el momento más adecuado para realizarse.

PEER TUTORING IN LEARNING A FOREIGN LANGUAGE AS A NON-MAJOR

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E. A. Makarova

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. The problems of stimulation cognitive activity and improvement of student learning motivation are of interest for many Russian and foreign researchers. One of the approaches to solve these problems, actively implemented in educational process abroad, is peer tutoring. Peer tutoring is a form of collaborative learning based on the models of student interactions organized in pairs or groups with shared roles «peer tutor- tutee».The aim of the study is to analyze effective models of peer tutoring used abroad, to develop alternate models and apply them while teaching reading and translation at foreign language lessons in non-linguistic university.Methodology and research methods. Peer tutoring is studied by using both qualitative and quantitative research methods such as data collection, analysis and generalizations along with the experiment and observation.Results and scientific novelty. As a result the peer tutoring models have been developed and implemented within the regular classroom settings while teaching reading and translation to students in non-linguistic university. The offered models of tutoring involve preparation realities of the Russian higher education institutions; meanwhile, there are no special centers of mentoring with separate teaching staff and psychologists in foreign universities. The advantages of peer tutoring over traditional forms of education and a group form of work when students solve a problem are designated, but their roles are not accurately distributed. The undertaken experiment lasted for two years, showed that peer tutoring advantages in foreign language training consist in the following: firstly, such way of lessons allows teachers to avoid time-losing monotonous reading and translations of texts discouraging students; secondly, exchanging opinions, students study each other and gain skills of estimation of personal and others' work; thirdly, interacting in pairs or small groups, pupils are more

Intelligent technology for construction of tutoring integrated expert systems: new aspects

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Galina V. Rybina

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The main aim of this paper is to acquaint readers of the journal “Open Education” with the accumulated experience of construction and practical use in the educational process of Cybernetics Department of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI of a special class of intelligent tutoring systems, based on the architectures of tutoring integrated expert systems. The development is carried out on the problem-oriented methodology basis and intelligent software environment of AT-TECHNOLOGY workbench. They provide automation of support of all the stages of construction and maintenance of the life cycle of such systems.In the context of basic models, methods, algorithms and tools that implement the conceptual foundations of a problem-oriented methodology, and which are evolutionarily developed and experimentally investigated in the process of constructing various architectures of training integrated expert systems, including webbased ones, some features of the generalized model of intellectual learning and its components are considered (in particular, the competence-based model of the trainee, the adaptive tutoring model, the ontology model of the course /discipline et al. as well as methods and means of their realization in the current versions of tutoring integrated expert systems.In current versions of tutoring integrated expert systems examples of implementation of typical intelligent tutoring problems are described for the generalized ontology “Intelligent systems and technologies” (individual planning of the method of studying the training course, intelligent analysis of training tasks, intelligent support for decision making.A brief description of the conceptual foundations of the model of the intelligent software environment of the AT-TECHNOLOGY workbench is given and a description of some components of the model is presented with a focus on the basic components – intelligent planner, standard design procedures and reusable

Development and evaluation of a peer-tutoring program for graduate students*.

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Copeland, H Liesel; Kinzy, Terri Goss

2005-03-01

Many interdisciplinary Ph.D. programs admit students of different educational backgrounds who receive a first year of a general curriculum education. However, student preparation for this curriculum varies, and methods are needed to provide academic support. Graduate student peer tutoring was piloted as an initiative funded by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Initiative for Minority Student Development award to the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (UMDNJ-RWJMS) and is now offered to all students in the interdisciplinary Molecular Biosciences Ph.D. program between Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and UMDNJ-RWJMS. Tutoring occurs individually or in small groups and has grown over the past 5 years in the number of students tutored and hours of tutoring. The program was evaluated by surveying and interviewing both tutors and students concerning process variables (e.g. awareness, frequency) and impact variables (e.g. perceived benefits, motivators), as well as by assessing changes in exam scores for the four core courses of the first-year graduate curriculum. Copyright © 2005 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Relative effectiveness of peer and cross-age tutoring in improving ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study was designed to determine the relative effectiveness of peer tutoring and cross-age tutoring on the language achievement of high need primary four pupils of public primary schools. The study adopted the equivalent group design with two experimental groups and a control group. Participants comprised of ninety ...

Self-Assessment in the REAP Tutor: Knowledge, Interest, Motivation, & Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Dela Rosa, Kevin; Eskenazi, Maxine

2013-01-01

Self-assessment questionnaires have long been used in tutoring systems to help researchers measure and evaluate various aspects of a student's performance during learning activities. In this paper, we chronicle the efforts made in the REAP project, a language tutor developed to teach vocabulary to ESL students through reading activities, to…

39 Peer tutors as learning and teaching partners: a cumulative ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

that of learning and teaching partners to both lecturers and students. ... learning and growth using a balanced approach, which included scholarly research and .... peer tutors to be the kind of academic advisors to students that universities ... In terms of advantages, student peer tutors are closer in experience to the students.

Learners' Experiences of Peer Tutoring in the Context of Outdoor ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The article explores peer tutoring in the context of outdoor learning at a primary school in Lesotho. The peer-tutoring approach was trialled to explore its effectiveness in promoting learning in large class sizes which characterise primary and secondary schools in Lesotho. An urban primary school was purposively selected ...

Prevention and Control of Bed Bugs in Residences

Science.gov (United States)

... in other rooms, including bathrooms, living rooms and laundry rooms. Look for spots or smears Dark blood ... having the inspection done by a pest control service provider (exterminator). If you find a bed bug, ...

The Effects of the Peer Tutoring Program: An Action Research Study of the Effectiveness of the Peer Tutoring Program at One Suburban Middle School

Science.gov (United States)

Grubbs, Natalie

2009-01-01

The results of a study that examined the peer tutoring program at a middle school are discussed in this article. In an effort to determine ways to improve the peer tutoring program an action research (AR) mixed design study was developed. AR is practitioner based research. Its purpose is to examine the work of practitioners for effectiveness and…

The Military Language Tutor (MILT) Program: An Advanced Authoring System.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaplan, Jonathan D.; Sabol, Mark A.; Wisher, Robert A.; Seidel, Robert J.

1998-01-01

Discusses the Military Language Tutor (MILT), a language-tutor authoring system, examining the development of a proof of principal version of MILT's two-dimensional Arabic microworld, which uses speech input to control an animated agent in solving an authored problem and describing an evaluation of the speech-driven microworld at Fort Campbell,…

Using Cognitive Tutor Software in Learning Linear Algebra Word Concept

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Kai-Ju

2015-01-01

This paper reports on a study of twelve 10th grade students using Cognitive Tutor, a math software program, to learn linear algebra word concept. The study's purpose was to examine whether students' mathematics performance as it is related to using Cognitive Tutor provided evidence to support Koedlinger's (2002) four instructional principles used…

College Students' Engagement in E-Tutoring Children in Remote Areas

Science.gov (United States)

ChanLin, Lih-Juan; Lin, Hong-Yen; Lu, Tze-Han

2016-01-01

To bridge the digital divide and learning gap among children in remote areas, an online tutoring service has been initiated for after-school learning in remote schools. College students were recruited for the role of teaching and supporting remote learners through online tutoring. This research aimed to study college students' involvement in…

Perspectives of New Trades Tutors: Boundary Crossing between Vocational Identities

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, Selena

2012-01-01

This article reports on a study of the perspectives of new tutors teaching traditional vocational trades who recently commenced teaching in the Institutes of Technologies and Polytechnics (ITPs) sector in New Zealand. The perspectives are collated from questionnaires and interviews of 13 tutors, from five ITPs, who have been teaching full-time for…

A Spoonful of Success: Undergraduate Tutor-Tutee Interactions and Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Marx, Jonathan; Wolf, Michelle G.; Howard, Kimberly

2016-01-01

We explore how the dynamics of the tutor-tutee relationship influence students' self-reliance and, ultimately, course performance. We examine 333 tutor and tutee pairs at a student success center at a public, comprehensive, university attended by approximately 5,000 undergraduates enrolled in more than 60 courses during spring 2015. The results…

Bayesian Analysis for Penalized Spline Regression Using WinBUGS

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Ciprian M. Crainiceanu

2005-09-01

Full Text Available Penalized splines can be viewed as BLUPs in a mixed model framework, which allows the use of mixed model software for smoothing. Thus, software originally developed for Bayesian analysis of mixed models can be used for penalized spline regression. Bayesian inference for nonparametric models enjoys the flexibility of nonparametric models and the exact inference provided by the Bayesian inferential machinery. This paper provides a simple, yet comprehensive, set of programs for the implementation of nonparametric Bayesian analysis in WinBUGS. Good mixing properties of the MCMC chains are obtained by using low-rank thin-plate splines, while simulation times per iteration are reduced employing WinBUGS specific computational tricks.

El tutor y la tutoría en el proceso de formación de especialistas sanitarios en la comunidad de Madrid: Análisis e interpretación mediante grupos focales

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Jesús Antonio Álvarez Sánchez

Full Text Available Fundamento: El sistema de formación de especialistas sanitarios (SFE en nuestro país tiene una gran importancia en el mantenimiento de un Sistema de Salud de calidad. La evolución de dicho sistema ha ido configurando al tutor de los residentes en el eje sobre el que recae gran parte de la responsabilidad de la calidad del proceso formativo y de la competencia clínica de los especialistas titulados, sin que se hayan definido los requisitos que deberían acompañar dicha responsabilidad. El objetivo del estudio es explorar la opinión de los tutores respecto de sus responsabilidades y necesidades en el SFE, y en un contexto de tutoría planificada. Métodos: La investigación se realizó mediante cuatro grupos focales formados por tutores de atención primaria y hospitales, donde los residentes realizan su formación. Resultados: los discursos de los participantes se centraron en la definición del perfil asistencial y académico de los tutores, las características que debería reunir el proceso de selección y acreditación del tutor, y en las responsabilidades, funciones y reconocimiento de la tutoría. Conclusiones: se ha identificado claramente la falta de concordancia entre el valor que "en teoría" se otorga a la docencia y la "práctica" de la misma, caracterizada por su subordinación a la asistencia, la escasez de recursos y la falta de reconocimiento de la labor docente. Se apunta la democratización y objetivación del proceso de designación del tutor, una cierta independencia de la tutoría respecto de la estructura asistencial, la potenciación de las Comisiones Docentes y Asesoras, el reconocimiento en baremos profesionales y el tiempo destinado a la tutoría como la mejor compensación.

Qualitative Evaluation of the Java Intelligent Tutoring System

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Edward Sykes

2005-10-01

Full Text Available In an effort to support the growing trend of the Java programming language and to promote web-based personalized education, the Java Intelligent Tutoring System (JITS was designed and developed. This tutoring system is unique in a number of ways. Most Intelligent Tutoring Systems require the teacher to author problems with corresponding solutions. JITS, on the other hand, requires the teacher to only supply the problem and problem specification. JITS is designed to "intelligently" examine the student's submitted code and determines appropriate feedback based on a number of factors such as JITS' cognitive model of the student, the student's skill level, and problem details. JITS is intended to be used by beginner programming students in their first year of College or University. This paper discusses the important aspects of the design and development of JITS, the qualitative methods and procedures, and findings. Research was conducted at the Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, Ontario, Canada.

ARTIE: An Integrated Environment for the Development of Affective Robot Tutors.

Science.gov (United States)

Imbernón Cuadrado, Luis-Eduardo; Manjarrés Riesco, Ángeles; De La Paz López, Félix

2016-01-01

Over the last decade robotics has attracted a great deal of interest from teachers and researchers as a valuable educational tool from preschool to highschool levels. The implementation of social-support behaviors in robot tutors, in particular in the emotional dimension, can make a significant contribution to learning efficiency. With the aim of contributing to the rising field of affective robot tutors we have developed ARTIE (Affective Robot Tutor Integrated Environment). We offer an architectural pattern which integrates any given educational software for primary school children with a component whose function is to identify the emotional state of the students who are interacting with the software, and with the driver of a robot tutor which provides personalized emotional pedagogical support to the students. In order to support the development of affective robot tutors according to the proposed architecture, we also provide a methodology which incorporates a technique for eliciting pedagogical knowledge from teachers, and a generic development platform. This platform contains a component for identiying emotional states by analysing keyboard and mouse interaction data, and a generic affective pedagogical support component which specifies the affective educational interventions (including facial expressions, body language, tone of voice,…) in terms of BML (a Behavior Model Language for virtual agent specification) files which are translated into actions of a robot tutor. The platform and the methodology are both adapted to primary school students. Finally, we illustrate the use of this platform to build a prototype implementation of the architecture, in which the educational software is instantiated with Scratch and the robot tutor with NAO. We also report on a user experiment we carried out to orient the development of the platform and of the prototype. We conclude from our work that, in the case of primary school students, it is possible to identify, without

ARTIE: an Integrated Environment for the development of Affective Robot Tutors

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Luis-Eduardo Imbernón Cuadrado

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Over the last decade robotics has attracted a great deal of interest from teachers and researchers as a valuable educational tool from preschool to highschool levels. The implementation of social- support behaviours in robot tutors, in particular in the emotional dimension, can make a signicant contribution to learning efciency.With the aim of contributing to the rising eld of affective robot tutors we have developed ARTIE (Affective Robot Tutor Integrated Environment. We offer an architectural pattern which integrates any given educational software for primary school children with a component whose function is to identify the emotional state of the students who are interacting with the software, and with the driver of a robot tutor which provides personalized emotional pedagogical support to the students. In order to support the development of affective robot tutors according to the proposed architecture, we also provide a methodology which incorporates a technique for eliciting pedagogical knowledge from teachers, and a generic development platform. This platform contains a component for identiying emotional states by analysing keyboard and mouse interaction data, and a generic affective pedagogical support component which specifies the affective educational interventions (including facial expressions, body language, tone of voice,... in terms of BML (a Behavior Model Language for virtual agent specification files which are translated into actions of a robot tutor. The platform and the methodology are both adapted to primary school students. Finally, we illustrate the use of this platform to build a prototype implementation of the architecture, in which the educational software is instantiated with Scratch and the robot tutor with NAO. We also report on a user experiment we carried out to orient the development of the platform and of the prototype. We conclude from our work that, in the case of primary school students, it is possible to

Focused didactic training for skills lab student tutors - which techniques are considered helpful?

Science.gov (United States)

Heni, Martin; Lammerding-Köppel, Maria; Celebi, Nora; Shiozawa, Thomas; Riessen, Reimer; Nikendei, Christoph; Weyrich, Peter

2012-01-01

Peer-assisted learning is widely used in medical education. However, little is known about an appropriate didactic preparation for peer tutors. We herein describe the development of a focused didactic training for skills lab tutors in Internal Medicine and report on a retrospective survey about the student tutors' acceptance and the perceived transferability of attended didactic training modules. The course consisted of five training modules: 1. 'How to present and explain effectively': the student tutors had to give a short presentation with subsequent video analysis and feedback in order to learn methods of effective presentation. 2. 'How to explain precisely': Precise explanation techniques were trained by exercises of exact description of geometric figures and group feedback. 3. 'How to explain on impulse': Spontaneous teaching presentations were simulated and feedback was given. 4. 'Peyton's 4 Step Approach': Peyton's Method for explanation of practical skills was introduced and trained by the participants. 5. 'How to deal with critical incidents': Possibilities to deal with critical teaching situations were worked out in group sessions. Twenty-three student tutors participated in the retrospective survey by filling out an electronic questionnaire, after at least 6 months of teaching experience. The exercise 'How to present and explain effectively' received the student tutors' highest rating for their improvement of didactic qualification and was seen to be most easily transferable into the skills lab environment. This module was rated as the most effective module by nearly half of the participants. It was followed by 'Peyton's 4 Step Approach' , though it was also seen to be the most delicate method in regard to its transfer into the skills lab owing to time concerns. However, it was considered to be highly effective. The other modules received lesser votes by the tutors as the most helpful exercise in improving their didactic qualification for skills lab

A Web-Based Adaptive Tutor to Teach PCR Primer Design

Science.gov (United States)

van Seters, Janneke R.; Wellink, Joan; Tramper, Johannes; Goedhart, Martin J.; Ossevoort, Miriam A.

2012-01-01

When students have varying prior knowledge, personalized instruction is desirable. One way to personalize instruction is by using adaptive e-learning to offer training of varying complexity. In this study, we developed a web-based adaptive tutor to teach PCR primer design: the PCR Tutor. We used part of the Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (the…

Conceptual Tutoring Software for Promoting Deep Learning: A Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Stott, Angela; Hattingh, Annemarie

2015-01-01

The paper presents a case study of the use of conceptual tutoring software to promote deep learning of the scientific concept of density among 50 final year pre-service student teachers in a natural sciences course in a South African university. Individually-paced electronic tutoring is potentially an effective way of meeting the students' varied…

Organization of the Master Tutor in Higher Education: Methodological Support

OpenAIRE

Asya Suchanu

2013-01-01

It reveals the uniqueness tutor support preparation of future teachers in humanities within the magistracy, the ways and means of professional development tomorrow's specialists. Substantiates the importance and meaning of revealed teaching tutor help first-year students, which manifests itself in optimizing individual learning trajectories, leading to efficient fulfillment and positive socialization of students.

A Window into Mathematical Support: How Parents' Perceptions Change Following Observations of Mathematics Tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Westenskow, Arla; Boyer-Thurgood, Jennifer; Moyer-Packenham, Patricia S.

2015-01-01

This research study examined the perceptions of 24 parents of rising 5th-grade students with mathematics learning difficulties as part of a 10-week summer mathematics tutoring experience. During the summer tutoring program, parents observed their children participating in mathematics learning experiences during one-to-one tutoring sessions. At the…

Benefits of Structured After-School Literacy Tutoring by University Students for Struggling Elementary Readers

Science.gov (United States)

Lindo, Endia J.; Weiser, Beverly; Cheatham, Jennifer P.; Allor, Jill H.

2018-01-01

This study examines the effectiveness of minimally trained tutors providing a highly structured tutoring intervention for struggling readers. We screened students in Grades K-6 for participation in an after-school tutoring program. We randomly assigned those students not meeting the benchmark on a reading screening measure to either a tutoring…

Evaluation of the Institutional Tutoring Program in a Polytechnic University of the State of Mexico

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Claudia Alejandra Hernandez Herrera

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The aim of this article is to evaluate the perception of the alumni on tutoring in a public university in Mexico to analyze the way tutoring has contributed to the integral development of students. A questionnaire was applied to a sample of 312 students; the data obtained were analyzed with the IBM SPSS software. In the results, it was found that the students perceive positively the professors’ competences for tutoring. However, just over 50% of the students feel satisfied with the assigned tutor; in so far as 60% consider that their tutor canalize them to regularization courses; in addition, only 50% admit to have a major and life project, also half of the students believe that tutoring has supported to increase their performance and integration to university; and only two thirds think that their professor has pedagogic knowledge. In conclusion, the data indicate that it must be worked on the implementation of educational policies which contribute to strengthen tutoring programs that encourage the youth in Mexico to successfully complete school, thus, prevent scholar underachievement.

Evaluation of cimi-shield knock-out bed bug eliminator against house fly (Musca domestica) adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Cimi-Shield Knock-Out (CSKO) Bed Bug Eliminator is a green treatment labeled for use against bed bugs, carpet beetles, ants, roaches, fleas, ticks, silverfish, millipedes and centipedes. The active ingredient is soybean oil. If CSKO is formulated according to label instructions and sprayed directly ...

Molecular markers reveal infestation dynamics of the bed bug (Hemiptera: Cimicidae) within apartment buildings.

Science.gov (United States)

Booth, Warren; Saenz, Virna L; Santangelo, Richard G; Wang, Changlu; Schal, Coby; Vargo, Edward L

2012-05-01

The bed bug, Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), has experienced an extraordinary global resurgence in recent years, the reasons for which remain poorly understood. Once considered a pest of lower socioeconomic classes, bed bugs are now found extensively across all residential settings, with widespread infestations established in multiapartment buildings. Within such buildings, understanding the population genetic structure and patterns of dispersal may prove critical to the development of effective control strategies. Here, we describe the development of 24 high-resolution microsatellite markers through next generation 454 pyrosequencing and their application to elucidate infestation dynamics within three multistory apartment buildings in the United States. Results reveal contrasting characteristics potentially representative of geographic or locale differences. In Raleigh, NC, an infestation within an apartment building seemed to have started from a single introduction followed by extensive spread. In Jersey City, NJ, two or more introductions followed by spread are evident in two buildings. Populations within single apartments in all buildings were characterized by high levels of relatedness and low levels of diversity, indicative of foundation from small, genetically depauperate propagules. Regardless of the number of unique introductions, genetic data indicate that spread within buildings is extensive, supporting both active and human-mediated dispersal within and between adjacent rooms or apartments spanning multiple floors.

Pre-admission factors and utilization of tutoring services in health professions educational programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Olivares-Urueta, Mayra; Williamson, Jon W

2013-01-01

Pre-admission factors tend to serve as indicators of student success in health professions educational programs, but less is known about the effects that academic assistance programs have on student success. This study sought to determine whether specific pre-admission factors could help to identify students who may require academic support during their health professions education. This retrospective analysis aimed to identify differences in pre-admission variables between those students requiring tutoring and a matched sample of students who did not require tutoring. One-way ANOVA was used to assess differences for dependent variables-age, cumulative GPA (cGPA), science GPA (sGPA), verbal graduate record examination (GRE) score, quantitative GRE score, analytical GRE score and combined GRE score, community college hours, average credit hours per semester, and highest semester credit hour load-across three groups of students who received no tutoring (NT 0 hrs), some tutoring (ST tutoring (MT >8 hrs). Total GRE and average semester hours differentiated NT from ST from MT (ptutoring: quantitative GRE, sGPA, cGPA and average semester hours taken. The combination of lower GRE scores and lighter average semester course load were most predictive of the need for academic assistance as defined by hours of tutoring. While the value of the GRE in admissions processes is generally accepted, the average semester hour load in college can also provide important information regarding academic preparation and the need for tutoring services.

MENGGALI METRIK YANG PENTING DALAM RANGKAIAN AKTIVITAS PERUBAHAN PERANGKAT LUNAK UNTUK MEMPREDIKSI BUG DENGAN ATURAN ASOSIASI

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Achmad Arwan

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Normal 0 false false false IN X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Dalam evolusi perangkat lunak terdapat rangkaian aktivitas proses perubahan yang kemudian oleh Nachiapan diformulasikan menjadi metrik-metrik yang mampu memprediksi bug secara presisi. Akan tetapi secara spesifik belum ditemukan seberapa besar pengaruh masing-masing metrik tersebut terhadap hasil prediksi sebuah bug. Penelitian ini mengusulkan pengukuran jumlah kemunculan metrik dengan kemunculan bug pada proyek eclipse. Sehingga dengan penelitian ini dapat diketahui metrik -metrik mana yang penting dalam prediksi kemunculan bug. Aturan asosiasi dalam penggalian data telah dipergunakan secara luas untuk menggali variabel-variabel saling terkait dalam sampel data. Metrik-metrik dalam proyek eclipse kemudian digali dengan aturan asosiasi untuk mendapatkan metrik yang muncul bersama bug. Hasil pengujian menunjukkan bahwa metrik Numberofchangeslate rata-rata kemunculannya sebesar 46,9%, sedangkan metrik Peopletotal muncul bersama bug rata-rata sebesar 43,57% dan metrik Numberofchangesearly memiliki kemunculan rata-rata 14% sehingga ketiga metrik tersebut merupakan metrik yang penting dalam memprediksi bug.

A Flowchart-Based Intelligent Tutoring System for Improving Problem-Solving Skills of Novice Programmers

Science.gov (United States)

Hooshyar, D.; Ahmad, R. B.; Yousefi, M.; Yusop, F. D.; Horng, S.-J.

2015-01-01

Intelligent tutoring and personalization are considered as the two most important factors in the research of learning systems and environments. An effective tool that can be used to improve problem-solving ability is an Intelligent Tutoring System which is capable of mimicking a human tutor's actions in implementing a one-to-one personalized and…

Practice Report / Bericht aus der Praxis: An exploration of peer tutor roles and recruitment at German medical schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Alvarez, Simone; Schultz, Jobst-Hendrik

2017-11-01

Almost all medical faculties in Germany actively employ peer tutors. However, little is known about the roles these tutors play from a faculty point of view. Also, there are only few descriptions of the tutor recruitment and selection processes. 32 of the medical faculties in Germany, where tutors are used in the training of medical students, were asked to provide information on the role and recruitment of tutors by means of a partially standardized questionnaire. At the surveyed faculties (return rate 28%), tutors are mostly employed for the purpose of teaching staff support. Even though desired in individual cases, tutors rarely play an active role in curriculum- or faculty development. The way tutor recruitment is handled strongly depends on the capabilities of the individual faculties and the way tutors are utilized. In many cases this process is structured, consisting of written and oral application phases, in other cases recruitment takes place without formal application procedures. The selection criteria, however, were found to be very similar at most faculties. The role of tutors from the faculties' point of view depends strongly on the respective nature of the tutorials, which are just as diverse as the approaches to tutor recruitment. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier GmbH.

Effect of a limited-enforcement intelligent tutoring system in dermatopathology on student errors, goals and solution paths.

Science.gov (United States)

Payne, Velma L; Medvedeva, Olga; Legowski, Elizabeth; Castine, Melissa; Tseytlin, Eugene; Jukic, Drazen; Crowley, Rebecca S

2009-11-01

Determine effects of a limited-enforcement intelligent tutoring system in dermatopathology on student errors, goals and solution paths. Determine if limited enforcement in a medical tutoring system inhibits students from learning the optimal and most efficient solution path. Describe the type of deviations from the optimal solution path that occur during tutoring, and how these deviations change over time. Determine if the size of the problem-space (domain scope), has an effect on learning gains when using a tutor with limited enforcement. Analyzed data mined from 44 pathology residents using SlideTutor-a Medical Intelligent Tutoring System in Dermatopathology that teaches histopathologic diagnosis and reporting skills based on commonly used diagnostic algorithms. Two subdomains were included in the study representing sub-algorithms of different sizes and complexities. Effects of the tutoring system on student errors, goal states and solution paths were determined. Students gradually increase the frequency of steps that match the tutoring system's expectation of expert performance. Frequency of errors gradually declines in all categories of error significance. Student performance frequently differs from the tutor-defined optimal path. However, as students continue to be tutored, they approach the optimal solution path. Performance in both subdomains was similar for both errors and goal differences. However, the rate at which students progress toward the optimal solution path differs between the two domains. Tutoring in superficial perivascular dermatitis, the larger and more complex domain was associated with a slower rate of approximation towards the optimal solution path. Students benefit from a limited-enforcement tutoring system that leverages diagnostic algorithms but does not prevent alternative strategies. Even with limited enforcement, students converge toward the optimal solution path.

Teaching the tacit knowledge of programming to noviceswith natural language tutoring

Science.gov (United States)

Lane, H. Chad; Vanlehn, Kurt

2005-09-01

For beginning programmers, inadequate problem solving and planning skills are among the most salient of their weaknesses. In this paper, we test the efficacy of natural language tutoring to teach and scaffold acquisition of these skills. We describe ProPL (Pro-PELL), a dialogue-based intelligent tutoring system that elicits goal decompositions and program plans from students in natural language. The system uses a variety of tutoring tactics that leverage students' intuitive understandings of the problem, how it might be solved, and the underlying concepts of programming. We report the results of a small-scale evaluation comparing students who used ProPL with a control group who read the same content. Our primary findings are that students who received tutoring from ProPL seem to have developed an improved ability to solve the composition problem and displayed behaviors that suggest they were able to think at greater levels of abstraction than students in the read-only group.

Where do people look when tutoring a robot?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lohan, Katrin Solveig; Fischer, Kerstin; Dondrup, Christian

In this paper, we investigate the relationship between tutors' gaze behavior and particular kinds of linguistic behaviors. In particular, we describe how word classes are distributed over different gazing classes. For this, we collected data from human-robot interactions and used a classification......). The analysis shows that there are, for instance, more object related keywords when people are gazing at an object, and more personal pronouns when people are looking at the robot. Understanding the relationship between human tutors' linguistic and gazing behavior can facilitate bootstrapping the one capability...

A Utilization-Focused Program Evaluation of a Supplemental Educational Services Third-Party Tutoring Model

Science.gov (United States)

Grainger, Michael J.

2013-01-01

Under the mandates of No Child Left Behind, supplemental educational services (SES) in the form of tutoring are provided to eligible students who attend schools in the 3rd year of program improvement status. A local suburban school district in the southern California currently uses a 3rd party tutoring model to provide tutoring services in both…

Help Helps, but Only so Much: Research on Help Seeking with Intelligent Tutoring Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Aleven, Vincent; Roll, Ido; McLaren, Bruce M.; Koedinger, Kenneth R.

2016-01-01

Help seeking is an important process in self-regulated learning (SRL). It may influence learning with intelligent tutoring systems (ITSs), because many ITSs provide help, often at the student's request. The Help Tutor was a tutor agent that gave in-context, real-time feedback on students' help-seeking behavior, as they were learning with an ITS.…

Edge effects of stink bugs in corn, cotton, peanut and soybean fields adjacent to woodland.

Science.gov (United States)

Producers face significant crop losses from stink bug species in the southeastern USA, but the high mobility and polyphagy of the bugs make predictions of their presence in crops difficult. While there is some evidence that they colonize crops from adjacent crops, there are no studies of their colo...

Economic Injury Level of the Neotropical Brown Stink Bug Euschistus heros (F.) on Cotton Plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Soria, M F; Degrande, P E; Panizzi, A R; Toews, M D

2017-06-01

In Brazil, the Neotropical brown stink bug, Euschistus heros (F.) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), commonly disperses from soybeans to cotton fields. The establishment of an economic treatment threshold for this pest on cotton crops is required. Infestation levels of adults of E. heros were evaluated on cotton plants at preflowering, early flowering, boll filling, and full maturity by assessing external and internal symptoms of injury on bolls, seed cotton/lint production, and fiber quality parameters. A completely randomized experiment was designed to infest cotton plants in a greenhouse with 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8 bugs/plant, except at the full-maturity stage in which only infestation with 8 bugs/plant and uninfested plants were evaluated. Results indicated that the preflowering, early-flowering, and full-maturity stages were not affected by E. heros. A linear regression model showed a significant increase in the number of internal punctures and warts in the boll-filling stage as the population of bugs increased. The average number of loci with mottled immature fibers was significantly higher at 4, 6, and 8 bugs compared with uninfested plants with data following a quadratic regression model. The seed and lint cotton was reduced by 18 and 25% at the maximum level of infestation (ca. 8 bugs/plant) in the boll-filling stage. The micronaire and yellowing indexes were, respectively, reduced and increased with the increase of the infestation levels. The economic injury level of E. heros on cotton plants at the boll-filling stage was determined as 0.5 adult/plant. Based on that, a treatment threshold of 0.1 adult/plant can be recommended to avoid economic losses.

Professor ou tutor: uma linha tênue na docência em EAD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michelle Brust Hackmayer

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Este trabalho analisa a natureza docente do trabalho de tutoria na Educação a Distância (EAD, utilizando, como referência, os documentos oficiais do Ministério da Educação e Cultura (MEC (Brasil, 2007 sobre as funções do tutor e as avaliações que os tutores do Centro de Educação Superior a Distância do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (CEDERJ fazem de sua prática. Contextualiza a pesquisa, abordando questões teóricas relativas à docência na EAD, a qual envolve vários profissionais em sua atuação, incluindo o tutor. Revela que até o momento inexiste um termo que defina o papel do tutor no trabalho com a EAD, papel este que se torna cada vez maior e mais indefinido. Mostra que, embora tenha, reconhecidamente, uma função importante e determinante nos cursos a distância, o tutor ainda é um profissional que carece de perfil profissiográfico, que lhe confira uma formação definida e um espaço determinado na modalidade. O artigo revela, ainda, que cresce a necessidade de estudos que indiquem quais as suas principais funções, sua identidade profissional e, sobretudo, a caracterização de sua atuação docente na EAD. Analisa as respostas do questionário aplicado aos 38 tutores do CEDERJ/UERJ, no curso de Licenciatura em Pedagogia e, finalmente, conclui que os tutores são unânimes em considerar sua atuação como docente, embora não sejam reconhecidos nem remunerados como tal pela instituição onde atuam.

The Private Tutoring Industry in Taiwan: Government Policies and Their Implementation

Science.gov (United States)

Zhan, Shengli

2014-01-01

Previous studies show that attending private tutoring has become a necessity to many primary and secondary students in East Asia. Educational policies and their effective implementation are crucial to guarantee the healthy development of the private tutoring industry and thus protect the rights of students and their families. Under the framework…

Supplementary tutoring in Trinidad and Tobago: Some implications for policy making

Science.gov (United States)

Barrow, Dorian A.; Lochan, Samuel N.

2012-06-01

Globally, private supplementary tutoring is a huge business and the practice is expanding rapidly in many regions of the world where it never existed before. In some of these regions it is posing a novel set of challenges for education planners and policy makers. The aim of this study was to examine the extent to which supplementary tutoring is impacting on the goals of the formal education system in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T). The participation rate in supplementary tutoring at primary school level in T&T was found to be high (88.2 per cent at Standard Five level), with the majority of the students being privately tutored by their regular school teachers. Their main motivation for taking private tutoring lessons was to try to secure a place in one of the few elite secondary schools in the country. The authors of this paper admit that there is no quick solution to the problem, especially if it is understood as a part of the process of cultural change. They contend that the key to breaking the elitist tradition lies in modifying public understanding about education and convincing parents and citizens at large that a wide range of options and opportunities exists outside the narrow confines of the old colonial economy and the old colonial schools.

Protecting Yourself from Bed Bugs in Public Places

Science.gov (United States)

... office. By reducing clutter in your workplace or school, you provide fewer places for the bed bugs to hide and fewer opportunities for them to hitchhike to your home. Keep your ... office or school, consider storing your belongings in a plastic bin. ...

Interweaving Autonomous Learning and Peer-tutoring in Coaching EFL Student-Teachers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleida Ariza Ariza

2009-10-01

Full Text Available In this article we share the findings on the exploration of undergraduate efl (English as a Foreign Language student-teachers' professional preparation and autonomous practices. Participants were tutees who attended tutorial sessions with peers in higher semesters. In this context, tutoring was based on a model we designed. As the model was implemented, they collected information by means of multiple qualitative research instruments. Results indicate that tutees' learning process was strongly influenced by their personality and attitudes. Similarly, tutees expanded their views in regard to the English language, its learning, and their communicative competence. Finally, we pinpoint some considerations for others interested in adopting this pedagogical strategy.

Proceedings of the Air Force Forum for Intelligent Tutoring Systems

Science.gov (United States)

1989-04-01

Science Air Force Summer Study on Fault Isolation in Air Force Weapons and Support Systems. He is an expert in simulation-oriented computer-based...Tutoring (Collins, 1976.) Reprinted with permission of Lawrence Erlbauni Assoc., Inc., Publishers, ( 1976. It should be clear that understanding natural...Grignetti, M., Hausman , C., & Gould, L. (1975). An intelligent on-line assistant and tutor: NLS-Scholar. In Proceedings of the National Computer

Mapping Psychology Students' Perspective on Group Peer-Tutoring in Statistics

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Cantinotti, Michael; Désormeaux-Moreau, Marjorie; Balbinotti, Marcos

2017-01-01

Students in psychology generally have difficulties to successfully accomplish mandatory courses in statistics. Group peer-tutoring is a pedagogical strategy to support them with a peer that has already successfully mastered the content of such a course. In order to specifically tailor group peer-tutoring to the needs of students and to sustain…

Verde plant bug, Creontiades signatus (Hemiptera: Miridae) effects of insect density and bloom period of infestation on cotton damage and yield

Science.gov (United States)

The verde plant bug, Creontiades signatus Distant (Hemiptera: Miridae), has emerged as a threat to cotton in South Texas, causing boll damage similar to boll-feeding stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae). Verde plant bugs were released into caged cotton for a one-week period to characterize the effec...

An evaluation of the student and tutor experience of a residential summer school event (OPTIMAX)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higgins, Robert; Robinson, Leslie; Hogg, Peter

2014-01-01

Aim: To explore the experiences of students and tutors who participated in a residential multi-cultural and multi-professional 3 week summer school event (OPTIMAX). Method: A grounded theory approach was adopted. Two semi-structured focus group interviews (student and tutor) were conducted to explore participant experiences. Both focus groups were audio recorded and then transcribed and coded to identify the main themes and draw conclusions. Results: Inductive coding defined categories and sub-categories to explore the relationships within and between the two sets of focus group data. Discussion: OPTIMAX was seen a positive experience by both students and tutors and provided an opportunity to undertake team learning with peers from different countries or professional backgrounds. However, consideration needs to be given to team size and tutor leadership. Summary: By participating with international collaborative projects such as this, there is an opportunity to develop learning and explore current practices within radiography. - Highlights: • We explored the experiences of students and tutors during a summer school event. • This was a multi-cultural and multi-professional event. • It was found to be a valuable learning experience by both students and tutors. • Key to this was collaborative team learning by students. • However, consideration needs to be given to team size and tutor leadership

The Development of a Tutor Programme in a University Hall of Residence--A Case Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Beasley, V. J.

The tutor system within a university hall of residence at Flinders University of South Australia and a method of inquiry used to study the system are examined. Interviews with residence hall tutors revealed four concerns: the need for guidelines, the nature of academic tutoring, pastoral care and its implications, and communication channels within…

Facilitating Group Analysis of Two Case Studies Utilising Peer Tutoring: Comparison of Tasks and Outcomes

Science.gov (United States)

Fong, Lin Siew

2016-01-01

Peer-tutoring sessions of two groups of advanced diploma in financial accounting students with mixed proficiency were analysed thoroughly in this study. Numerous studies in peer tutoring have produced favourable results to both tutors and tutees due to the scaffolding process which promotes effective learning. However, there is a lack of studies…

Tutoring Mentoring Peer Consulting

OpenAIRE

Szczyrba, Birgit; Wildt, Johannes

2006-01-01

Consulting, Coaching und Supervision, Tutoring, Mentoring und kollegiale Beratung: Beratungsangebote verschiedenster Art werden wie selbstverständlich in den Berufen nachgefragt, die mit Beziehung und Interaktion, mit komplexen sozialen Organisationen und Systemen, mit hoher Verantwortlichkeit, aber unsicheren Handlungsbedingungen zu tun haben. Mittlerweile beginnt diese Nachfrage auch in den Hochschulen zu steigen. Eine solche Steigerung wird ausgelöst durch den Wandel in den Lehr-Lernkultur...

An adaptive signal-processing approach to online adaptive tutoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Bergeron, Bryan; Cline, Andrew

2011-01-01

Conventional intelligent or adaptive tutoring online systems rely on domain-specific models of learner behavior based on rules, deep domain knowledge, and other resource-intensive methods. We have developed and studied a domain-independent methodology of adaptive tutoring based on domain-independent signal-processing approaches that obviate the need for the construction of explicit expert and student models. A key advantage of our method over conventional approaches is a lower barrier to entry for educators who want to develop adaptive online learning materials.

An intelligent tutoring system for a power plant simulator

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seifi, H.; Seifi, A.R. [Tarbiat Modarres University, Tehran (Iran). Faculty of Engineering, Dept. of Electrical Engineers

2002-07-28

An intelligent tutoring system (ITS) is proposed for a power plant simulator. With a well designed ITS, the need for an instructor is minimized and the operator may readily and efficiently take, in real-time, the control of simulator with appropriate messages he(she) gets from the tutoring system. Using SIMULINK and based on object oriented programming (OOP) and C programming language, a fossil-fuelled power plant simulator with an ITS is proposed. Promising results are demonstrated for a typical power plant.

Are tutor-students capable of writing good biochemistry exams?

OpenAIRE

Alexandre B., Sé; Depto. Biologia Celular, UnB, Brasília, DF, 70910-900; Passos, Renato M.; Depto. Biologia Celular, UnB, Brasília, DF, 70910-900; Hermes-Lima, Marcelo; Depto. Biologia Celular, UnB, Brasília, DF, 70910-900

2004-01-01

In a previous article we described the relevance of student seminars for the learning process of appliedbiochemistry for medical and nutrition students (Hermes-Lima et al., Biochem. Mol.Biol.Educ. 30:30-34,2002). First semester students of a basic biochemistry course (BioBio) are divided in 10 groupsof 5 members, and each group is assigned to a specic topic (diabetes, cholesterol, etc) under thesupervision of a tutor-student. The tutors have already coursed BioBio and are currently undertakin...

Some Principles of Intelligent Tutoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Ohlsson, Stellan

1986-01-01

Research on intelligent tutoring systems is discussed from the point of view of providing moment-by-moment adaptation of content and form of instruction to the changing cognitive needs of individual learners. Implications of this goal for cognitive diagnosis, subject matter analysis, teaching tactics, and teaching strategies are analyzed. (Author)

The Military Language Tutor (MILT)

Science.gov (United States)

1998-11-01

interactive tutor in a Pentium based laptop computer. The first version of MILT with keyboard input was designed for Spanish and Arabic and can recognize... NLP ). The goal of the MILT design team was an authoring system which would require no formal external training and which could be learned within four

Possibilities and Limitations of the Application of Academic Tutoring in Poland

Science.gov (United States)

Krajewska, Anna; Kowalczuk-Waledziak, Marta

2014-01-01

In the face of mass education, the need to seek individualized methods of students' teaching-learning is increasing. That causes academic tutoring to become more and more popular in higher education all over the world. The article presents the theoretical background of tutoring, the results of research in that regard and the benefits of its…

25 CFR 36.90 - What recreation, academic tutoring, student safety, and health care services must homeliving...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false What recreation, academic tutoring, student safety, and... What recreation, academic tutoring, student safety, and health care services must homeliving programs provide? All homeliving programs must provide for appropriate student safety, academic tutoring...

BIOLOGICAL FEATURES OF TARAN (RUTILUS HECKELII OF THE DNIEPER-BUG ESTUARY SYSTEM

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K. Geina

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Purpose. To analyze morphological variability and basic biological features of the modern stock of taran of the Dnieper-Bug estuary system in the conditions of the transformed Dnieper flow. Methodology. Morphological variability was determined based on the comparison of morphological features of roach Rutilus rutilus (Linnaeus, 1758 of the Kakhovka reservoir and semi-migratory taran Rutilus rutilus heckelii (Nordmann, 1840 of the Dnieper-Bug estuary system. As a main criterion of the evaluation of the taran stock biological state, we used age, sex structure, growth characteristics, fecundity and condition factor. Fish sampling was carried out at stationary monitoring-observation stations of the Institute of Fisheries NAAS of Ukraine. Field and cameral processing of the collected materials were performed based on conventional methods and guidelines. Findings. Morphological variability analysis demonstrated significant differences between Dnieper and Bug taran. The highest differences were observed for antroventral distance (td=11.19. Significant differences were also observed for antenanal and ventroanal distances td=4.05-4.14. No significant differences were found for meristic features. There were also significant differences between Dnieper-Bug taran and Kakhovka reservoir roach, which had formed a resident form after regulating the Dnieper River flow. Kakhovka reservoir roach is more deep-bodied with Н=32.79%, t-test value was 5.65. Pelvic fins were more shifted to the caudal fin (td=5.28 that resulted in significant difference (p<0.05 in ventroanal distance (td=4.26. Taran also had somewhat smaller length of the anal fin base (td=4.73 but its height was higher – td=5.78. The main peculiarity of the current biological state of taran stock is the domination of young age groups. The small number of fish in the boundary groups of the age series right wing with relative stability of growth features indicate on intensive pressure on the

Gender differences in partner interactions during an after-school science peer tutoring program

Science.gov (United States)

Brei-Crawley, M. Jo

This teacher research study examined an after-school science program called SSTAR (Science Students Teaching as Resources) to determine if this program encourages early scientific involvement for girls, specifically the investigation of simple machines. SSTAR's overall goal was to develop scientific skills in fourth grade tutors who were partnered with second grade tutees. This study was conducted during two different SSTAR study sessions, identified as the pilot study (year one) and the expanded study (year two). The SSTAR program and the data collection instruments were refined and modified during this two-year process. Four data collection instruments were used to gather data and insights into this program; video-taped interactions between tutor and tutee, a writing assessment, a performance assessment and focus group discussions. The video taped partnership interactions found that tutors used similar instructional strategies and tutees gave similar response strategies. However, these strategies varied according to the gender of the partner. A written assessment, in the form of an open ended question was given to just the tutors at the beginning and end of their session. Additionally, a performance assessment was given. This assessment asked the tutors to construct a machine from the Legos(c) that were provided. This assessment was also done in a pretest/post-test format. Scores from the writing and performance assessment were then compared and the performance assessment showed more tutor growth in knowledge of simple machines than the writing assessment. Overall students made comments stating they enjoyed the SSTAR program and would sign up again. They had no preference for a same gender or opposite gender partner among either tutor or tutee discussions. All the data examined shows evidence that SSTAR was an effective program for tutor growth in the scientific area of simple machines. While the original study focus was specifically on girls, both genders

Contemporary Tutorial Call: Using Purpose-Built Video as a Grammar Tutor

Science.gov (United States)

Merlo, Jarrad R.; Gruba, Paul A.

2015-01-01

Despite an increased emphasis on form-focused instruction (FFI), the use of the computer as a grammar tutor has remained largely unexamined for nearly two decades. With new technologies at hand, there is a need to take a fresh look at online grammar tutors and link designs more strongly to contemporary second language acquisition (SLA) principles…

Study of Personalized Network Tutoring System Based on Emotional-cognitive Interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Manfei; Ma, Ding; Wang, Wansen

Aiming at emotion deficiency in present Network tutoring system, a lot of negative effects is analyzed and corresponding countermeasures are proposed. The model of Personalized Network tutoring system based on Emotional-cognitive interaction is constructed in the paper. The key techniques of realizing the system such as constructing emotional model and adjusting teaching strategies are also introduced.

Developing a Structured Teaching Plan for Psychiatry Tutors at Oxford University

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Taiar, Hasanen

2014-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this thesis was to examine the teaching ways I undertook in teaching medical students and to examine the use of a structured teaching plan for the academic and clinical tutors in psychiatry. The teaching plan was developed for use, initially by Oxford University Academic tutors at the Department of Psychiatry. In addition,…

Mitochondrial phylogenomics of Hemiptera reveals adaptive innovations driving the diversification of true bugs

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hu; Leavengood, John M.; Chapman, Eric G.; Burkhardt, Daniel; Song, Fan; Jiang, Pei; Liu, Jinpeng; Cai, Wanzhi

2017-01-01

Hemiptera, the largest non-holometabolous order of insects, represents approximately 7% of metazoan diversity. With extraordinary life histories and highly specialized morphological adaptations, hemipterans have exploited diverse habitats and food sources through approximately 300 Myr of evolution. To elucidate the phylogeny and evolutionary history of Hemiptera, we carried out the most comprehensive mitogenomics analysis on the richest taxon sampling to date covering all the suborders and infraorders, including 34 newly sequenced and 94 published mitogenomes. With optimized branch length and sequence heterogeneity, Bayesian analyses using a site-heterogeneous mixture model resolved the higher-level hemipteran phylogeny as (Sternorrhyncha, (Auchenorrhyncha, (Coleorrhyncha, Heteroptera))). Ancestral character state reconstruction and divergence time estimation suggest that the success of true bugs (Heteroptera) is probably due to angiosperm coevolution, but key adaptive innovations (e.g. prognathous mouthpart, predatory behaviour, and haemelytron) facilitated multiple independent shifts among diverse feeding habits and multiple independent colonizations of aquatic habitats. PMID:28878063

Generalized Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT) Cloud/Virtual Open Campus Quick Start Guide (Revision 1)

Science.gov (United States)

2017-06-01

ARL-CR-0816 ● JUNE 2017 US Army Research Laboratory Generalized Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT) Cloud/Virtual Open...to the originator. ARL-CR-0816 ● JUNE 2017 US Army Research Laboratory Generalized Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT...January 2017 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Generalized Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT) Cloud/Virtual Open Campus Quick-Start Guide (Revision 1

SISTEMAS TUTORES INTELIGENTES COMO APOYO EN EL PROCESO DE APRENDIZAJE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edwin Eduardo Millan Rojas

2015-09-01

Full Text Available El objetivo principal de este artículo es la identificación de las principales características de los tutores inteligentes, su origen y evolución los cuales pueden ofrecer elementos para la formulación de nuevos proyectos de investigación relacionados con la educación y el uso de los tutores. El método utilizado es el descriptivo y sistémico, los cuales permiten recopilar los datos necesarios, la información presentada ha sido adquirida de bases de datos especializadas como IEEE, Redalyc, ACM y Science Direct, además de artículos de revistas de universidades internacionales y de proyectos de investigación descargados de Google Académico. Los Sistemas Tutores Inteligentes surgieron al combinar técnicas de inteligencia artificial (IA con los métodos clásicos de enseñanza. Estos son sistemas de software que generan un ambiente idóneo para la interacción y satisfacción de las necesidades del estudiante, adaptable a los conocimientos previos y a la capacidad de evolución de cada alumno respecto a un área del conocimiento. El funcionamiento de los STI se basa en la relación entre tres principales módulos (tutor, estudiante y dominio, para presentar al usuario la información de manera estructurada. La investigación llevada a cabo permitió reunir los aspectos más relevantes de los Sistemas Tutores Inteligentes (STI y presentarlos como una herramienta óptima para llevar a cabo un proceso de aprendizaje.

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... Part 1: Structure Part 2: Origin Part 3: Function Textbook Study notes Image library 3-D animated ... nail care Injured skin Bug bites and stings "); (function () { var a = "", b = [ "adid=aad-aad-1", "site= ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... aging skin care Kids’ zone About skin: Your body's largest organ About hair: Not just on your ... bug bite, such as a rash, fever, or body aches, see your doctor or a board-certified ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... bites Although most bug bites are harmless, some can spread dangerous diseases like Zika virus, dengue, Lyme ... and tuck your shirt into your pants. You can also pre-treat outer layers of clothing with ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... and treatments Acne and rosacea Bumps and growths Color problems Contagious skin diseases Cosmetic treatments Dry / sweaty ... prevent bug bites, dermatologists recommend the following tips: Use insect repellent. To protect against mosquitoes, ticks and ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... a dermatologist Why see a board-certified dermatologist? Home Public and patients Skin, hair, and nail care ... bites and stings can be safely treated at home. To treat bug bites and stings at home, ...

A pilot project of an online cross-age tutoring program: crescent school virtual learning (vLearning).

Science.gov (United States)

Chow, Ronald

2016-11-01

Traditional classroom teaching is the standard of education. However, there may be some students who feel uncomfortable approaching their teachers and may feel more at ease if they ask for assistance from their peers. There are two types of student-to-student tutoring methods that are supplements to classroom learning: peer tutoring between same-age students and cross-age tutoring between different-age children. Cross-age tutoring programs in which the tutor is 2-3 years older than the tutee have been reported to be more effective than those between same-age students in promoting student responsibility, empowerment and academic performance. A pilot online cross-age tutoring program was launched in September 2014 at Crescent School. A new website was designed, created and implemented with the permission and regular monitoring of the Student Services faculty for the online program - Crescent School Virtual Learning (vLearning). The program was well received and will undergo evaluation in the future.

Tutor system for the application of programming through intelligence analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivelisse Teresa Machín-Torres

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The present article is part of a research for the development of an intelligent tutor system for the application of programming in the José Martí University of Sancti -Spíritus. The objective of the implementation of this system is to enhance the management knowledge related to programming issues and improve the orientation in solving problems in the university. In order to carry out the implementation of the intelligent tutoring system, the intelligent tutor systems currently in the programming area described the tools and technologies used in the developed solution (methodology, patterns, softwares, programming languages, etc.. It allowed an efficient implementation in a short time of the proposed system. The foregoing is reflected positively in a better student satisfaction and therefore in a higher performance in the teaching-learning process of the university.

Peer Tutoring: Developing Writing in College Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

LUIS BERNARDO PEÑA-BORRERO

2010-03-01

Full Text Available This article presents partial results of a qualitative research on the Project of Inquiry (PRIN that takes place in the Psychology Degree Program at Javeriana University. This project is a formative experience focused on the importance of learning investigative abilities, through academic writing. The research was based on peer-tutoring interactions with 85 ethnographic records, which were subjected to an open and axial codification, in accordance to guidelines developed by Strauss and Corbin. The recordswere organized in emerging categories for their interpretation, in order to establish the potential significance of the pedagogic interaction. The results established the advantages of peer-tutoring in the integral progress of students and specifically the promotion of reading and writing abilities at a College level.

E-learning environment as intelligent tutoring system

Science.gov (United States)

Nagyová, Ingrid

2017-07-01

The development of computers and artificial intelligence theory allow their application in the field of education. Intelligent tutoring systems reflect student learning styles and adapt the curriculum according to their individual needs. The building of intelligent tutoring systems requires not only the creation of suitable software, but especially the search and application of the rules enabling ICT to individually adapt the curriculum. The main idea of this paper is to attempt to specify the rules for dividing the students to systematically working students and more practically or pragmatically inclined students. The paper shows that monitoring the work of students in e-learning environment, analysis of various approaches to educational materials and correspondence assignments show different results for the defined groups of students.

Increasing Academic Skills of Students with Autism Using Fifth Grade Peers as Tutors.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamps, Debra; And Others

1989-01-01

Nonhandicapped fifth-grade students conducted tutoring sessions in math, language, and reading for two elementary-aged children with autism. Results demonstrated that normal peers could effectively increase academic behaviors of autistic students through tutoring activities. (Author/JDD)

Are tutor-students capable of writing good biochemistry exams?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sé Alexandre B.

2004-05-01

Full Text Available In a previous article we described the relevance of student seminars for the learning process of appliedbiochemistry for medical and nutrition students (Hermes-Lima et al., Biochem. Mol.Biol.Educ. 30:30-34,2002. First semester students of a basic biochemistry course (BioBio are divided in 10 groupsof 5 members, and each group is assigned to a specic topic (diabetes, cholesterol, etc under thesupervision of a tutor-student. The tutors have already coursed BioBio and are currently undertakingan advanced biochemistry course. In order to evaluate the learning of applied biochemistry for BioBiostudents a true or false exam (TFE is performed. This exam is made of 50 questions (5 on eachtopic elaborated by the tutors under the supervision of the teacher. The TFE corresponds to 10percent of the grade of BioBio and focus on clinical and/or applied biochemistry situations. At theend of the exam, BioBio students were asked to share their opinions about TFEs (n = 401, from2001/1 to 2003/2. When asked to give a 0-to-4 score regarding (a the diculty level of the test,(b the technical quality and (c if the exam makes an appropriate evaluation of applied biochemistryknowledge, the scores were 2.9, 3.4 and 2.9, respectively. BioBio students were also asked if they ndvalid to be evaluated by a tutor-made exam and if they would like to participate in the making ofTFEs; 96 and 58 percent answered yes, respectively.In another survey, we interviewed former BioBio students from the 2nd to the 7th semesters (n=95about TFEs (since 1999-1 regarding technical aspects, which included (1 clarity of questions, (2 levelof diculty, (3 clinical application and (4 thinking (as opposed to memorizing abilities demanded;the 0-to-4 scores were 3.1, 2.9, 2.6, and 2.5, respectively. Other four questions were on the validityof tutors writing TFEs and their capacity to perform such a task; the average score was 3.2. Oursurveys show the students good acceptance of the seminar system

Simulating the 2012 High Plains drought using three single column versions (SCM) of BUGS5

Science.gov (United States)

Medina, I. D.; Denning, S.

2013-12-01

The impact of changes in the frequency and severity of drought on fresh water sustainability is a great concern for many regions of the world. One such location is the High Plains, where the local economy is primarily driven by fresh water withdrawals from the Ogallala Aquifer, which accounts for approximately 30% of total irrigation withdrawals from all U.S. aquifers combined. Modeling studies that focus on the feedback mechanisms that control the climate and eco-hydrology during times of drought are limited, and have used conventional General Circulation Models (GCMs) with grid length scales ranging from one hundred to several hundred kilometers. Additionally, these models utilize crude statistical parameterizations of cloud processes for estimating sub-grid fluxes of heat and moisture and have a poor representation of land surface heterogeneity. For this research, we will focus on the 2012 High Plains drought and will perform numerical simulations using three single column versions (SCM) of BUGS5 (Colorado State University (CSU) GCM coupled to the Simple Biosphere Model (SiB3)) at multiple sites overlying the Ogallala Aquifer for the 2011-2012 periods. In the first version of BUGS5, the model will be used in its standard bulk setting (single atmospheric column coupled to a single instance of SiB3), secondly, the Super-Parameterized Community Atmospheric Model (SP-CAM), a cloud resolving model (CRM consists of 64 atmospheric columns), will replace the single CSU GCM atmospheric parameterization and will be coupled to a single instance of SiB3, and for the third version of BUGS5, an instance of SiB3 will be coupled to each CRM column of the SP-CAM (64 CRM columns coupled to 64 instances of SiB3). To assess the physical realism of the land-atmosphere feedbacks simulated at each site by all versions of BUGS5, differences in simulated energy and moisture fluxes will be computed between the 2011 and 2012 period and will be compared to differences calculated using

Biology, Pest Status, Microbiome and Control of Kudzu Bug (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Plataspidae): A New Invasive Pest in the U.S.

Science.gov (United States)

Dhammi, Anirudh; van Krestchmar, Jaap B.; Ponnusamy, Loganathan; Bacheler, Jack S.; Reisig, Dominic D.; Herbert, Ames; Del Pozo-Valdivia, Alejandro I.; Roe, R. Michael

2016-01-01

Soybean is an important food crop, and insect integrated pest management (IPM) is critical to the sustainability of this production system. In recent years, the introduction into the United States of the kudzu bug currently identified as Megacopta cribraria (F.), poses a threat to soybean production. The kudzu bug was first discovered in the state of Georgia, U.S. in 2009 and since then has spread to most of the southeastern states. Because it was not found in the North American subcontinent before this time, much of our knowledge of this insect comes from research done in its native habitat. However, since the U.S. introduction, studies have been undertaken to improve our understanding of the kudzu bug basic biology, microbiome, migration patterns, host selection and management in its expanding new range. Researchers are not only looking at developing IPM strategies for the kudzu bug in soybean, but also at its unique relationship with symbiotic bacteria. Adult females deposit bacterial packets with their eggs, and the neonates feed on these packets to acquire the bacteria, Candidatus Ishikawaella capsulata. The kudzu bug should be an informative model to study the co-evolution of insect function and behavior with that of a single bacteria species. We review kudzu bug trapping and survey methods, the development of bioassays for insecticide susceptibility, insecticide efficacy, host preferences, impact of the pest on urban environments, population expansion, and the occurrence of natural enemies. The identity of the kudzu bug in the U.S. is not clear. We propose that the kudzu bug currently accepted as M. cribraria in the U.S. is actually Megacopta punctatissima, with more work needed to confirm this hypothesis. PMID:27649166

Teacher training tutor of the micro university: issues to reflect

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Enma Gallardo Barroso

2004-09-01

Full Text Available This article highlights the great importance an appropriate strategy for the development of the formation of tutors has, due to the role they play in the entire formation of thousands of youngsters as well as teachers and professors. Tutors have the duty of transmitting, together with the professor of the territorial university center, the basic knowledge of the sciences of Education and to endow them of tools for their future professional work.

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... Particularly if you’re visiting areas with known insect-borne diseases, it’s important to take steps to ... bug bites, dermatologists recommend the following tips: Use insect repellent. To protect against mosquitoes, ticks and other ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... Choosing Wisely Education Online Learning Center MOC Recognized Credit Basic Derm Curriculum Teaching and learning guides Suggested ... it’s important to take steps to reduce your risk. To help prevent bug bites, dermatologists recommend the ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

Medline Plus

Full Text Available ... and Lectureship Clarence S. Livingood Award and Lectureship Marion B. Sulzberger Award and Lectureship Master Dermatologist Award Members ... skin Bug bites and stings "); (function () { var a = "", b = [ "adid=aad-aad-1", "site=ehs.con.aad. ...

Recolonization of bat roost by bat bugs (Cimex pipistrelli): could parasite load be a cause of bat roost switching?

Science.gov (United States)

Bartonička, Tomáš; Růžičková, Lucie

2013-04-01

Roost ectoparasites are believed to have a negative impact on fitness of their hosts as birds or mammals. Previous studies were mostly focussed on the synchronization between reproduction cycles of ectoparasites and hosts living in infested roosts. However, to date, it has not been examined how fast ectoparasites colonize new, non-infested roosts and thus increasing the impact on the local populations of hosts. The parasite-host model was studied, including bat bugs Cimex pipistrelli and soprano pipistrelles Pipistrellus pygmaeus, where bat behaviour was observed which tended to reduce the parasite load in bat roosts. We investigated (1) whether bats change their roosting behaviour when we discontinued synchronization of their reproduction and the life cycle of the bat bugs and (2) how fast and which stages of bat bugs reoccupy cleaned roosts. In a 3-year field experiment, we removed all bat bugs from six bat boxes in each spring. Pipistrelles bred young in all non-infested boxes during these 3 years. In addition, 8 years of regular observations before this experiment indicate that bats avoided breeding in the same bat boxes at all. Bat bugs were found again in clean boxes in mid-May. However, their densities did not maximise before the beginning of June, before parturition. A re-appearance of bugs was observed after 21-56 days after the first bat visit. Adult bugs, mainly females, colonised cleaned boxes first though at the same time there were a lot of younger and smaller instars in non-manipulated roosts in the vicinity.

Big-Eyed Bugs Have Big Appetite for Pests

Science.gov (United States)

Many kinds of arthropod natural enemies (predators and parasitoids) inhabit crop fields in Arizona and can have a large negative impact on several pest insect species that also infest these crops. Geocoris spp., commonly known as big-eyed bugs, are among the most abundant insect predators in field c...

EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES IN INTELLIGENT TUTORS FOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

CIPRIAN CUCU

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Intelligent Tutoring Systems have been successfully used to simulate human tutoring in various fields such as mathematics, physics or computer programming. The current paper discusses some of the particularities of designing such systems for the education of communication skills, specifically in a business setting (customer relations, employee communications etc. Since communication is an ill-defined domain (i.e. does not provide a systematic method to obtain a solution, various challenges arise. One of these challenges is the design of educational objectives – the module built on top of the system that would check the users' actions against predefined patterns and would provide the users with feed-back accordingly.

Module for adaptative teaching planning for a tutoring system

OpenAIRE

Ceyca Ceyca, Jorge Omar; Pazos Rangel, Rodolfo A.; Ruiz Vanoye, Jorge Alberto

2007-01-01

La enseñanza ha sido fortalecida con la aparición de las modernas tecnologías computacionales, que han permitido desarrollar la educación a distancia principalmente con el uso de la Internet, siendo los sistemas tutores una de las herramienta más beneficiadas e importantes para esté fin. Sin embargo, la adaptación de los sistemas tutores a las capacidades de los estudiantes es un punto que a penas está siendo explorado [1, 2], es por ello que dada la experiencia en el CENIDET para desarrollar...

Desempeño del tutor de medicina en una universidad pública

OpenAIRE

Josefina Salomón Cruz; María Luisa Castillo Orueta; Juan Antonio Córdova Hernández

2016-01-01

La tutoría es una estrategia que busca alcanzar la formación integral de los estudiantes, la calidad en la educación y la disminución de indicadores tales como deserción, rezago y reprobación escolar. Por ello, la función del tutor representa un compromiso docente e institucional. El objetivo de este estudio es evaluar el desempeño de los tutores en la licenciatura de médico cirujano de la división académica de ciencias de la salud de la Universidad Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco a...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

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Full Text Available ... hair, and nail care Skin care Hair care / hair loss Injured skin Nail care Anti-aging skin care ... hair, and nail care Skin care Hair care / hair loss Injured skin Blisters Bug bites and stings How ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

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Full Text Available ... care Injured skin Bug bites and stings "); (function () { var a = "", b = [ "adid=aad-aad-1", "site=ehs. ... t", "hpos=l", "zone=public", "mcat1=de12", ]; for (var c = 0; c "); (function () { var a = "", b = [ "adid= ...

A Transcriptome Survey Spanning Life Stages and Sexes of the Harlequin Bug, Murgantia histrionica

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Michael E. Sparks

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The harlequin bug, Murgantia histrionica (Hahn, is an agricultural pest in the continental United States, particularly in southern states. Reliable gene sequence data are especially useful to the development of species-specific, environmentally friendly molecular biopesticides and effective biolures for this insect. Here, mRNAs were sampled from whole insects at the 2nd and 4th nymphal instars, as well as sexed adults, and sequenced using Illumina RNA-Seq technology. A global assembly of these data identified 72,540 putative unique transcripts bearing high levels of similarity to transcripts identified in other taxa, with over 99% of conserved single-copy orthologs among insects being detected. Gene ontology and protein family analyses were conducted to explore the functional potential of the harlequin bug’s gene repertoire, and phylogenetic analyses were conducted on gene families germane to xenobiotic detoxification, including glutathione S-transferases, carboxylesterases and cytochrome P450s. Genic content in harlequin bug was compared with that of the closely related invasive pest, the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål. Quantitative analyses of harlequin bug gene expression levels, experimentally validated using quantitative real-time PCR, identified genes differentially expressed between life stages and/or sexes.

Pheromone of the banana-spotting bug, amblypelta lutescens lutescens Distant (Hemiptera: Coreidae): identification, synthesis and field bioassay

Science.gov (United States)

The banana spotting bug Amblypelta lutescens lutescens Distant (Hemiptera: Coreidae) is one of the principal pests of tree fruits and nuts across northern and eastern Australia. Apart from damage assessments in orchards, there are currently no other methods for monitoring bug activity to aid manage...

Improving Classroom Learning by Collaboratively Observing Human Tutoring Videos while Problem Solving

Science.gov (United States)

Craig, Scotty D.; Chi, Michelene T. H.; VanLehn, Kurt

2009-01-01

Collaboratively observing tutoring is a promising method for observational learning (also referred to as vicarious learning). This method was tested in the Pittsburgh Science of Learning Center's Physics LearnLab, where students were introduced to physics topics by observing videos while problem solving in Andes, a physics tutoring system.…

2016 All Bugs Good and Bad Webinar Series - eXtension

Science.gov (United States)

Importadas Resources Instructional Videos Publications Top of the Mound Game Fire Ant Images from BugMugs.org Breeding and Genomics Sheep Small and Backyard Flocks Small Meat Processors Sustainable Marine Fisheries

The effect of peer tutoring about performance of students with disabilities in inclusive classroom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatiani dos Santos

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This study aimed at to investigate of the procedure of peer tutoring on the academic performance of pupils with intellectual disability in common classrooms of Early Education schools. Participate on the study two children with intellectual disability and twelve typical developmental as tutorial. The taught task was the recognition and the nomination of vowels of the alphabet, through playful activities, being that in the condition without peer tutoring the task was individualized and in the tutoring condition, the task was made in pairs. The results even so point that the peer tutoring can be effective in the improvement of the academic performance, although that is not applied for all of the children and the subject deserve more inquiry.

Supporting Tutoring Within a Namibian Environmental Education ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Jenny

During the 2003 NEEC course, the coordinator conducted research into tutor support as part of the requirements of the University of South Africa for the ... opportunity for participants' ongoing professional development was accommodated.

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

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Full Text Available ... Mohs AUC MyDermPath+ Psoriasis Patient education resources Practice Management Center Coding and reimbursement Coding MACRA Fee schedule ... it’s important to take steps to reduce your risk. To help prevent bug bites, dermatologists recommend the ...

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

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Full Text Available ... dress appropriately to prevent bug bites. Cover exposed skin as much as possible by wearing long-sleeved shirts, pants, socks and closed shoes instead of sandals. For additional protection, pull your socks up over your pants and ...

Tutoring and Mentoring for Student Development

OpenAIRE

Luescher Thierry M.; Schreiber Birgit; Moja Teboho

2017-01-01

This guest-edited issue of JSAA focuses on tutoring and mentoring and draws in parts on papers that were presented at the 2016 joint conference of the International Consortium for Educational Development (ICED) and the Higher Education Learning and Teaching Association of Southern Africa (HELTASA).

Melt With This Kiss: Paralyzing and Liquefying Venom of The Assassin Bug Pristhesancus plagipennis (Hemiptera: Reduviidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Andrew A; Madio, Bruno; Jin, Jiayi; Undheim, Eivind A B; Fry, Bryan G; King, Glenn F

2017-04-01

Assassin bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae) are venomous insects, most of which prey on invertebrates. Assassin bug venom has features in common with venoms from other animals, such as paralyzing and lethal activity when injected, and a molecular composition that includes disulfide-rich peptide neurotoxins. Uniquely, this venom also has strong liquefying activity that has been hypothesized to facilitate feeding through the narrow channel of the proboscis-a structure inherited from sap- and phloem-feeding phytophagous hemipterans and adapted during the evolution of Heteroptera into a fang and feeding structure. However, further understanding of the function of assassin bug venom is impeded by the lack of proteomic studies detailing its molecular composition.By using a combined transcriptomic/proteomic approach, we show that the venom proteome of the harpactorine assassin bug Pristhesancus plagipennis includes a complex suite of >100 proteins comprising disulfide-rich peptides, CUB domain proteins, cystatins, putative cytolytic toxins, triabin-like protein, odorant-binding protein, S1 proteases, catabolic enzymes, putative nutrient-binding proteins, plus eight families of proteins without homology to characterized proteins. S1 proteases, CUB domain proteins, putative cytolytic toxins, and other novel proteins in the 10-16-kDa mass range, were the most abundant venom components. Thus, in addition to putative neurotoxins, assassin bug venom includes a high proportion of enzymatic and cytolytic venom components likely to be well suited to tissue liquefaction. Our results also provide insight into the trophic switch to blood-feeding by the kissing bugs (Reduviidae: Triatominae). Although some protein families such as triabins occur in the venoms of both predaceous and blood-feeding reduviids, the composition of venoms produced by these two groups is revealed to differ markedly. These results provide insights into the venom evolution in the insect suborder

Motivation, Challenges, Support (MCS) Cycle Model for the Development of PBL Tutors

Science.gov (United States)

Constantinou, Costas S.; Nicolaou, Stella A.

2018-01-01

Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is well known for enhancing students' problem solving skills and teamwork, while the role of PBL tutors is to facilitate discussion rather than teach. This study used four focus groups to explore PBL tutors' motivation, challenges and support mechanisms, and the relationship between these. The study found that there…

An intelligent tutor to learn the evaluation of microcontroller I/O programming expressions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Arends, Hugo; Heeren, B.J.; Keuning, H.W.; Jeuring, J.T.

2017-01-01

Embedded systems engineers need to learn how I/O programming expressions for microcontrollers evaluate. We designed, implemented, and tested an intelligent tutoring system prototype for learning such evaluations. The Microcontroller Knowledge (MicK) tutor guides a student step-by-step towards a

Central catheter dressing in a simulator: the effects of tutor's assistance or self-learning tutorial Parche de catéter central en simulador: efecto de la presencia del tutor o del aprendizaje auto-instruccional Curativo de cateter central em simulador: efeito da presença do tutor ou da aprendizagem autoinstrucional

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Milene Thaís Marmol

2012-12-01

Full Text Available AIMS: to compare the performance of undergraduate students concerning semi-implanted central venous catheter dressing in a simulator, with the assistance of a tutor or of a self-learning tutorial. METHOD: Randomized controlled trial. The sample consisted of 35 undergraduate nursing students, who were divided into two groups after attending an open dialogue presentation class and watching a video. One group undertook the procedure practice with a tutor and the other with the assistance of a self-learning tutorial. RESULTS: in relation to cognitive knowledge, the two groups had lower performance in the pre-test than in the post-test. The group that received assistance from a tutor performed better in the practical assessment. CONCLUSION: the simulation undertaken with the assistance of a tutor showed to be the most effective learning strategy when compared to the simulation using a self-learning tutorial. Advances in nursing simulation technology are of upmost importance and the role of the tutor in the learning process should be highlighted, taking into consideration the role this professional plays in knowledge acquisition and in the development of critical-reflexive thoughts and attitudes. (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT 01614314.OBJETIVO: comparar el desempeño de graduandos en la realización del parche del catéter venoso central semi-implantado, en simulador, con el auxilio del tutor o de un guía auto-instruccional. MÉTODO: estudio experimental controlado hecho aleatorio. La muestra fue compuesta por 35 alumnos de Graduación en Enfermería que fueron asignados en dos grupos después de asistir a una clase expositiva dialogada y a un vídeo. Un grupo realizó el entrenamiento del procedimiento con el tutor y el otro con el auxilio de un guía auto- instruccional. RESULTADOS: con relación al conocimiento cognoscitivo, los dos grupos presentaron desempeño menor en la pre-prueba comparada al pos-prueba. El grupo con presencia del tutor

Formal solution for the fields within a beam-bug calibrator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fessenden, T J.

1998-01-01

For some time I was bothered by the fact that measurements of offsets in the various bug calibration setups never agreed with the simple formulae (2) used for determining electron beam position in the Livermore induction linacs and transport systems. About 1983 I realized that the discrepancy arises from the way the bug calibrator simulates an electron beam in a conducting pipe. At that time I solved the problem using the method presented here. Unfortunately, I did not write it up at that time. After considerable effort, I was able to repeat the calculation. Since I have little confidence that after a few years I could ever do it again, I felt obliged to write it up in some detail. Our beam bug calibrator consists of two conducting cylinders, nominally concentric, that simulate the electron beam within a drift tube. The radii of the larger cylinder is 2.3 times that of the smaller giving an electrical impedance of 50 Ohms to the coaxial combination. To simulate a beam off-axis within a drift tube, the inner tube is moved relative to the outer tube. This only approximately simulates the motion of a beam because the surface current on the inner tube redistributes in response to the translation. Fortunately, the fields of the translated inner cylinder can be found exactly using complex variable theory (1)

Towards an Intelligent Tutor for Mathematical Proofs

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Serge Autexier

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Computer-supported learning is an increasingly important form of study since it allows for independent learning and individualized instruction. In this paper, we discuss a novel approach to developing an intelligent tutoring system for teaching textbook-style mathematical proofs. We characterize the particularities of the domain and discuss common ITS design models. Our approach is motivated by phenomena found in a corpus of tutorial dialogs that were collected in a Wizard-of-Oz experiment. We show how an intelligent tutor for textbook-style mathematical proofs can be built on top of an adapted assertion-level proof assistant by reusing representations and proof search strategies originally developed for automated and interactive theorem proving. The resulting prototype was successfully evaluated on a corpus of tutorial dialogs and yields good results.

"I couldn't do this with opposition from my colleagues": A qualitative study of physicians' experiences as clinical tutors

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Rödjer Stig

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Clinical contact in the early curriculum and workplace learning with active tutorship are important parts of modern medical education. In a previously published study, we found that medical students' tutors experienced a heavier workload, less reasonable demands and less encouragement, than students. The aim of this interview study was to further illuminate physicians' experiences as clinical tutors. Methods Twelve tutors in the Early Professional Contact course were interviewed. In the explorative interviews, they were asked to reflect upon their experiences of working as tutors in this course. Systematic text condensation was used as the analysis method. Results In the analysis, five main themes of physicians' experiences as clinical tutors in the medical education emerged: (a Pleasure and stimulation. Informants appreciated tutorship and meeting both students and fellow tutors, (b Disappointment and stagnation. Occasionally, tutors were frustrated and expressed negative feelings, (c Demands and duty. Informants articulated an ambition to give students their best; a desire to provide better medical education but also a duty to meet demands of the course management, (d Impact of workplace relations. Tutoring was made easier when the clinic's management provided active support and colleagues accepted students at the clinic, and (e Multitasking difficulties. Combining several duties with those of a tutorship was often reported as difficult. Conclusions It is important that tutors' tasks are given adequate time, support and preparation. Accordingly, it appears highly important to avoid multitasking and too heavy a workload among tutors in order to facilitate tutoring. A crucial factor is acceptance and active organizational support from the clinic's management. This implies that tutoring by workplace learning in medical education should play an integrated and accepted role in the healthcare system.

Facial Affect Displays during Tutoring Sessions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ghijsen, M.; Heylen, Dirk K.J.; Nijholt, Antinus; op den Akker, Hendrikus J.A.

2005-01-01

An emotionally intelligent tutoring system should be able to provide feedback to students, taking into account relevant aspects of the mental state of the student. Facial expressions, put in context, might provide some cues with respect to this state. We discuss the analysis of the facial expression

The Effects of Trained Peer Tutors on the Physical Education of Children Who Are Visually Impaired

Science.gov (United States)

Wiskochil, Brian; Lieberman, Lauren J.; Houston-Wilson, Cathy; Petersen, Susan

2007-01-01

This study examined the effect of trained peer tutors on the academic learning time-physical education (ALT-PE) scores of children with visual impairments. It found a mean increase of 20.8% for ALT-PE and increases in ALT-PE scores for closed and open skills and that trained peer tutors were more effective than were untrained peer tutors.

Computer games to teach hygiene: an evaluation of the e-Bug junior game.

Science.gov (United States)

Farrell, David; Kostkova, Patty; Weinberg, Julius; Lazareck, Lisa; Weerasinghe, Dasun; Lecky, Donna M; McNulty, Cliodna A M

2011-06-01

Handwashing, respiratory hygiene and antibiotic resistance remain major public health concerns. In order to facilitate an effective outcome when teaching the basic principles of hand and respiratory hygiene, educational interventions should first target school children. As computer games are ubiquitous in most children's lives, e-Bug developed computer games targeted at teaching children handwashing, respiratory hygiene and antibiotic resistance. The games were designed for two target audiences: junior school children (9-12 year olds); and senior school children (13-15 year olds). Between May and August 2009, the finalized junior game underwent an evaluation in three UK schools (in Glasgow, Gloucester and London), involving 62 children in the schools and ∼ 1700 players accessing the junior game online. The e-Bug junior game consists of a number of levels of play, each of which promotes a set of learning outcomes (LOs). These LOs, complementary to those in the e-Bug packs, are expressed through the game mechanics (the rules of the game) rather than through story or dialogue. Although the junior game's evaluation demonstrated a statistically significant change in the knowledge for only a small number of given LOs, because many children had the required knowledge already before playing the game, this is e-Bug's first statistical study on the junior game and the first comprehensive evaluation of its kind. Future work includes a re-examination of the quiz-style questionnaires utilized in this study and an exploration of the potential knowledge change acquired strictly through engagement.

American Trypanosomiasis (Also Known as Chagas Disease) Triatomine Bug FAQs

Science.gov (United States)

... are typically found in the southern United States, Mexico, Central America, and South America (as far south ... feed on the blood of mammals (including humans), birds, and reptiles. Triatomine bugs live in a wide ...

Grade Level and Gender Differences in a School-Based Reading Tutoring Program

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Sau Hou

2011-01-01

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the grade level and gender differences in a school-based reading tutoring program. The treatment group included 10 first-grade and 12 second-grade struggling readers, and the control group included 41 first-grade and 63 second-grade nonstruggling readers. The tutors were teacher candidates in an…

The effects of student support services peer tutoring on learning and study strategies, grades, and retention at a rural community college

Science.gov (United States)

Mumford, Thomas J.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Student Support Services peer tutoring on rural community college students' success in an Anatomy and Physiology class as measured changes in self-reported learning and study strategies, the final grade in Anatomy and Physiology class, and persistence/retention in the following semesters. A secondary goal was to assess the relative merits of two training methods: standard peer tutoring and standard peer tutoring plus introduction to attribution theory. This Anatomy and Physiology class typically has a failure rate of 50%. The federal government annually funds more than 700 Student Support Services (SSS) grants and 162 Health Career Opportunities Programs (HCOP). Nearly 94% of these SSS programs included a tutoring component, and 84% of these programs use peer tutoring. Peer tutors were randomly assigned to one of the treatment conditions and students were randomly assigned to one of the two treatment conditions. There were 31 students in the attribution condition and 28 students in the standard condition. Students were required to have a minimum of 10 hours of tutoring to be included in the analysis. Each tutored student was yoked to a control student who had not sought peer tutoring assistance. Participants were matched for age, marital status, number of adults in the family, number of children in the family and incoming academic skills (CPT Reading Test Results), financial status, and race. The results support peer tutoring as an effective method of increasing student success. The findings support the use of attribution training for tutors as a theoretical base of intervention. Students tutored by attribution trained tutors scored significantly higher on LASSI, had higher Anatomy and Physiology grades, and returned to college at a higher rate than their yoked controls. Standard trained tutors scored significantly higher on the LASSI Test Taking subscale and returned to college at a higher rate than their

Bullous reactions to bed bug bites reflect cutaneous vasculitis

Science.gov (United States)

This study evaluates bullous cutaneous reactions and sequential histopathology in an individual sensitized to bed bug bites in an effort to better understand the allergic response and histology associated with these bites. There was a progression of the inflammatory response across time ranging from...

INTELLIGENT TUTORING SYSTEM FOR DISTANCE EDUCATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jose Dutra de Oliveira Neto

2012-04-01

Full Text Available This study aims to develop and implement a tool called intelligent tutoring system in an online course to help a formative evaluation in order to improve student learning. According to Bloom et al. (1971,117 formative evaluation is a systematic evaluation to improve the process of teaching and learning. The intelligent tutoring system may provides a timely and high quality feedback that not only inform the correctness of the solution to the problem, but also informs the students about the accuracy of the response relative to their current knowledge about the solution. Constructive and supportive feedback should be given to the students to reveal the right and wrong answers immediately after taking the test. A feedback about the right answers is a form to reinforce positive behaviors. Identifying possible errors and relating them to the instruction material may help student to strengthen the content under consideration. The remedial suggestion should be given for each answer with detailed prescription with regards the materials and instructional procedures before taking next step. The main idea is to inform the students what he has learned and what he still has to learn. The open-source LMS called Moodle™ was extended to accomplish the formative evaluation, high-quality feedback, and communal knowledge presented here with a short online financial math course that is being offered at a large University in Brazil. The preliminary results shows that the intelligent tutoring system using high quality feedback helped the students to improve their knowledge about the solution to the problems based on the errors of their past cohorts. The results and suggestion for future work are presented and discussed.

Virtual Reality Check: Teachers Use Bug-in-Ear Coaching to Practice Feedback Techniques with Student Avatars

Science.gov (United States)

Elford, Marti; Carter, Richard A., Jr.; Aronin, Sara

2013-01-01

There is not just one way to give feedback, nor is there just one kind of feedback. Bug-in-ear technology, which allows coaches to give teachers in the classroom immediate feedback, has been used successfully for 35 years. In an updated twist on this method, researchers at the University of Kansas used bug-in-ear coaching in a virtual classroom…

Comparative susceptibilities of different life stages of the tarnished plant bug (Hemiptera: miridae) to three classes of insecticide

Science.gov (United States)

Insecticidal control of the tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris (Palisot de Beauvois), is targeted at the adult and nymphal stages, but there is little information on relative susceptibilities of these insects to insecticides. Tarnished plant bug adults were collected from various locations in Mi...

Tutoring and Mentoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nelia Frade

2017-12-01

Full Text Available South African institutions of higher education (HE have increasingly come under pressure to broaden access to historically under-represented groups who are often underprepared for tertiary education as a result of apartheid-era secondary schooling (White Paper, 2013. This has resulted in student enrolments becoming increasingly diverse with respect to racial, cultural, socio-economic and linguistic backgrounds (Underhill & McDonald, 2010. In an attempt to address these issues and promote increased throughput rates, institutions of HE have increasingly begun to introduce tutoring, including supplemental instruction (SI and peer-assisted learning (PAL and mentoring programmes.

Climbing ability of teneral and sclerotized adult bed bugs and assessment of adhesive properties of the exoskeletal fluid using atomic force microscopy.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kevin R Hinson

Full Text Available We observed that teneral adults (72 h, and sclerotized group 2 (S2 bed bugs (n = 30, height climbed = 2.64 cm at >72 h post molt. When heights from all climbing events were summed, teneral bed bugs (650.8 cm climbed differed significantly (P< 0.01 from recently sclerotized (82 cm climbed and sclerotized (group 1 = 104.6 cm climbed, group 2 = 107.8 cm climbed bed bugs. These findings suggested that the external surface of teneral bed bug exoskeletons possess an adhesive property. Using atomic force microscopy (AFM, we found that adhesion force of an exoskeletal (presumably molting fluid decreased almost five-fold from 88 to 17 nN within an hour of molting. Our findings may have implications for laboratory safety and the effectiveness of bed bug traps, barriers, and biomimetic-based adhesives.

Self-Observation and Peer Feedback as a Faculty Development Approach for Problem-Based Learning Tutors: A Program Evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia, Irène; James, Richard W; Bischof, Paul; Baroffio, Anne

2017-01-01

Good teaching requires spontaneous, immediate, and appropriate action in response to various situations. It is even more crucial in problem-based learning (PBL) tutorials, as the tutors, while directing students toward the identification and attainment of learning objectives, must stimulate them to contribute to the process and provide them with constructive feedback. PBL tutors in medicine lack opportunities to receive feedback from their peers on their teaching strategies. Moreover, as tutorials provide little or no time to stop and think, more could be learned by reflecting on the experience than from the experience itself. We designed and evaluated a faculty development approach to developing PBL tutors that combined self-reflection and peer feedback processes, both powerful techniques for improving performance in education. We developed an observation instrument for PBL facilitation to be used both by tutors to self-observe and reflect on own teaching strategies and by peers to observe and provide feedback to tutors. Twenty PBL sessions were video-recorded. Tutors completed the instrument immediately after their PBL session and again while watching their video-recorded session (self-observation). A group of three observers completed the instrument while watching each recorded session and provided feedback to each tutor (peer observation and feedback). We investigated tutors' perceptions of the feasibility and acceptability of the approach and gathered data on its effectiveness in enhancing tutors' facilitation skills. The preclinical medical curriculum at the University of Geneva is essentially taught by PBL. A new program of faculty development based on self-observation and peer feedback was offered to voluntary tutors and evaluated. Our results suggest that self-observation and peer feedback, supported by an instrument, can be effective in enhancing tutors' facilitation skills. Reflection on self-observation raised teachers' awareness of the effectiveness of

How Does Private Tutoring Mediate the Effects of Socio-Economic Status on Mathematics Performance? Evidence from Turkey

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Atalmis, Erkan Hasan; Yilmaz, Mustafa; Saatcioglu, Argun

2016-01-01

Private tutoring refers to additional instruction out of school. With its determinants and effects, private tutoring has received increasing attention from scholars over the past decades. Because of the increasing role of school and high-stakes exams, the demand for private tutoring has increased tremendously in Turkey. The purpose of this study…

Robots show us how to teach them: feedback from robots shapes tutoring behavior during action learning.

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Vollmer, Anna-Lisa; Mühlig, Manuel; Steil, Jochen J; Pitsch, Karola; Fritsch, Jannik; Rohlfing, Katharina J; Wrede, Britta

2014-01-01

Robot learning by imitation requires the detection of a tutor's action demonstration and its relevant parts. Current approaches implicitly assume a unidirectional transfer of knowledge from tutor to learner. The presented work challenges this predominant assumption based on an extensive user study with an autonomously interacting robot. We show that by providing feedback, a robot learner influences the human tutor's movement demonstrations in the process of action learning. We argue that the robot's feedback strongly shapes how tutors signal what is relevant to an action and thus advocate a paradigm shift in robot action learning research toward truly interactive systems learning in and benefiting from interaction.

Seasonal and regional dynamics of M. ulcerans transmission in environmental context: deciphering the role of water bugs as hosts and vectors.

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Marion, Estelle; Eyangoh, Sara; Yeramian, Edouard; Doannio, Julien; Landier, Jordi; Aubry, Jacques; Fontanet, Arnaud; Rogier, Christophe; Cassisa, Viviane; Cottin, Jane; Marot, Agnès; Eveillard, Matthieu; Kamdem, Yannick; Legras, Pierre; Deshayes, Caroline; Saint-André, Jean-Paul; Marsollier, Laurent

2010-07-06

Buruli ulcer, the third mycobacterial disease after tuberculosis and leprosy, is caused by the environmental mycobacterium M. ulcerans. Various modes of transmission have been suspected for this disease, with no general consensus acceptance for any of them up to now. Since laboratory models demonstrated the ability of water bugs to transmit M. ulcerans, a particular attention is focused on the transmission of the bacilli by water bugs as hosts and vectors. However, it is only through detailed knowledge of the biodiversity and ecology of water bugs that the importance of this mode of transmission can be fully assessed. It is the objective of the work here to decipher the role of water bugs in M. ulcerans ecology and transmission, based on large-scale field studies. The distribution of M. ulcerans-hosting water bugs was monitored on previously unprecedented time and space scales: a total of 7,407 water bugs, belonging to large number of different families, were collected over one year, in Buruli ulcer endemic and non endemic areas in central Cameroon. This study demonstrated the presence of M. ulcerans in insect saliva. In addition, the field results provided a full picture of the ecology of transmission in terms of biodiversity and detailed specification of seasonal and regional dynamics, with large temporal heterogeneity in the insect tissue colonization rate and detection of M. ulcerans only in water bug tissues collected in Buruli ulcer endemic areas. The large-scale detection of bacilli in saliva of biting water bugs gives enhanced weight to their role in M. ulcerans transmission. On practical grounds, beyond the ecological interest, the results concerning seasonal and regional dynamics can provide an efficient tool in the hands of sanitary authorities to monitor environmental risks associated with Buruli ulcer.

An Evaluation of the Generalized Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT) from an Author’s Perspective

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2014-12-01

An Evaluation of the Generalized Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT) from an Author’s Perspective by Robert A Sottilare, Keith W...Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT) from an Author’s Perspective Robert A Sottilare and Keith W Brawner Human Research and Engineering...SUBTITLE An Evaluation of the Generalized Intelligent Framework for Tutoring (GIFT) from an Author’s Perspective 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT

Bug bites and stings: When to see a dermatologist

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Full Text Available ... Private payer Medicare physician payment MACRA implementation Alternative payment models Fee schedule State policy State policy and action ... a dermatologist Why see a board-certified dermatologist? Home Public and patients Skin, hair, and nail care Injured skin Bug bites and stings "); (function () { var ...

Biochemical Assay Detects Feeding Damage to Loblolly Pine Seeds Caused by the Leaffooted Pine Seed Bug (Hemiptera: Coreidae)

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Cameron G. Lait; Daniel R. Miller; Sarah L. Bates; John H. Borden; Allison R. Kermode

2003-01-01

A large number of proteins in salivary gland extracts of the leaffooted pine seed bug, Leptoglossus corculus Say, were strongly recognized by a polyclonal antibody-based assay developed for detecting saliva of the western conifer seed bug, Lepfoglossus occidentalis Heidemann, in lodgepole pine, Pinus contorta var...

Time-Quality Tradeoff of Waiting Strategies for Tutors to Retrieve Relevant Teaching Methods

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Shih, Wen-Chung; Tseng, Shian-Shyong; Yang, Che-Ching; Liang, Tyne

2011-01-01

As more and more undergraduate students act as voluntary tutors to rural pupils after school, there is a growing need for a supporting environment to facilitate adaptive instruction. Among others, a teaching method retrieval system is intended to help tutors find relevant teaching methods for teaching a particular concept. However, teaching…

Mining Data from Interactions with a Motivational-Aware Tutoring System Using Data Visualization

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Rebolledo-Mendez, Genaro; Du Boulay, Benedict; Luckin, Rosemary; Benitez-Guerrero, Edgard Ivan

2013-01-01

Tutoring systems are a common tool for delivering educational content and recent advances in this field include the detection of and reaction to learners' motivation. A data set derived from interactions in a tutoring system and its motivationally-aware variant provided opportunities to discover patterns of behavior in connection with motivational…

Volunteer Motivations and Satisfaction in a Tutoring Program: Implications for Recruitment and Retention

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Gonzalez, Kimberly

2009-01-01

The present study employed a functional approach to assess the motivations of tutors volunteering at a non-profit tutoring program. Based on the work of Clary et al. (1998), the "Volunteer Functions Inventory" (VFI) was used to differentiate between six different functions or motivations; values, understanding, social, career, protective and…

The Bad Bugs Book Club: Science, Literacy, and Engagement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanna Verran

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The Bad Bugs Bookclub was launched in 2009. It comprises scientists and non-scientists. The aim of the Bookclub is to read and discuss novels where infectious disease forms part of the plot, in order to enhance learning about microbiology. The focus of the discussion is on appreciation of the novel, its scientific (microbiologic accuracy and relevance to contemporary microbiology. There are several potential audiences for the Bad Bugs Bookclub, for example students in a classroom setting, or in a more social environment, and/or the general public.  Meeting reports and reading guides have been posted on a dedicated website. For education purposes, additional project work for assessment is suggested for students reading each novel. Bookclub meetings may be held on particular dates in the microbiologic calendar, coupled with additional public engagement activities and student participation. The approach has significant flexibility in terms of intended audience, assessment and extension work, and provides a refreshing and stimulating alternative means for talking about microbiology.

A case study of pedagogy of mathematics support tutors without a background in mathematics education

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Walsh, Richard

2017-01-01

This study investigates the pedagogical skills and knowledge of three tertiary-level mathematics support tutors in a large group classroom setting. This is achieved through the use of video analysis and a theoretical framework comprising Rowland's Knowledge Quartet and general pedagogical knowledge. The study reports on the findings in relation to these tutors' provision of mathematics support to first and second year undergraduate engineering students and second year undergraduate science students. It was found that tutors are lacking in various pedagogical skills which are needed for high-quality learning amongst service mathematics students (e.g. engineering/science/technology students), a demographic which have low levels of mathematics upon entering university. Tutors teach their support classes in a very fast didactic way with minimal opportunities for students to ask questions or to attempt problems. It was also found that this teaching method is even more so exaggerated in mandatory departmental mathematics tutorials that students take as part of their mathematics studies at tertiary level. The implications of the findings on mathematics tutor training at tertiary level are also discussed.

Effectiveness of Tutoring to Improve Academic Performance in Nursing Students at the University of Seville

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

María Dolores Guerra-Martín

2017-07-01

Full Text Available In response to the increase of Higher Education support provided to tutoring programs, this paper presents the design, implementation and evaluation of a tutoring program to improve the academic performance of at-risk students enrolled in the last year of a nursing degree characterized by academic failure (failed courses. A controlled experimental study was carried out to evaluate a tutoring program that included a minimum of nine meetings performed by an expert professor as tutor. A questionnaire for assessing the academic needs was designed and interventions were performed when responses were: nothing, a little or something. Medium to large effects were found in the progress of failed course to passed course (p =.000, rφ = .30, improving the information about courses (p < .001, d = 2.01, the information comprehension (p < .001, d = 0.85 and the strategies to improve academic performance (p < .001, d = 1.37. The intervention group students’ response highlighted program satisfaction and effectiveness. The significance of the study lies in reinforcing the formal tutoring as a tool to improve academic performance in at-risk students.

What can we learn from problem-based learning tutors at a graduate entry medical school? A mixed method approach.

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O Doherty, Diane; Mc Keague, Helena; Harney, Sarah; Browne, Gerard; McGrath, Deirdre

2018-05-04

Problem-based learning (PBL) has been adopted by many medical schools as an innovative method to deliver an integrated medical curriculum since its inception at McMaster University (Dornan et al., Med Educ 39(2):163-170, 2005; Finucane et al., Med Educ 35(1):56-61, 2001; Barrows, Tutorials in problem-based learning: A new direction in teaching the health professions, 1984). The student experience in PBL has been explored in detail (Merriam, New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education 89: 3-13, 2001; Azer, Kaohsiung J Med Sci 25(5): 240-249, 2009; Boelens et al., BMC Med Ed 15(1): 84, 2015; Dolmans et al., Med Teach 24(2):173-180, 2002; Lee et al., Med Teach 35(2): e935-e942, 2013) but the tutors who facilitate PBL have valuable insight into how PBL functions and this aspect has not been extensively researched. The integrated curriculum for years 1 and 2 at the Graduate Entry Medical School at the University of Limerick is delivered though problem-based learning (PBL). This programme requires collaborative teamwork between students and the tutors who facilitate small-group tutorial sessions. All PBL tutors at GEMS are medically qualified, with the majority (68%) currently working in clinical practice. A mixed-methods approach was adopted, utilising two surveys and follow-up focus groups to fully understand the tutor experience. Thirty-three tutors took part in two online surveys with a response rate of 89%. Thirteen tutors participated in two focus groups. Descriptive analysis was completed on survey data and thematic analysis on focus group discussions which highlighted five main themes. Tutors reported challenges with managing group dynamics, development of confidence in tutoring with experience and a willingness to learn from peers to improve practice. Findings are in keeping with previously published work. Results also identified several less commonly discussed issues impacting student engagement in PBL including the use of mobile device technology

An intelligent tutoring system for teaching fundamental physics concepts

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Albacete, Patricia Lucia

1999-12-01

Students in traditional elementary mechanics classes can master problem solving of a quantitative nature but not those of a qualitative type. Moreover, students' naive conceptions of physics remain unchanged after completing their class. A few approaches have been implemented to improve this situation however none have met with great success. Since elementary mechanics is the foundation for all of physics and it is a required course for most science majors there is a clear need to improve the instruction of the subject. To address this problem I developed a intelligent tutoring system, called the Conceptual Helper, which coaches students during homework problem solving. The tutor uses a unique cognitive based approach to teaching physics, which presents innovations in three areas. (1) The teaching strategy, which focuses on teaching those links among the concepts of the domain that are essential for conceptual understanding yet are seldom learned by the students. (2) The manner in which the knowledge is taught, which is based on a combination of effective human tutoring techniques (e.g., hinting), effective pedagogical methods (e.g., a microscopic view of matter), and less cognitively demanding approaches (e.g., anthropomorphism). (3) The way in which misconceptions are handled which uses the underlying scientific correct line of reasoning to describe to the student the phenomenon that is the basis for the misconception. From a technological point of view the Conceptual Helper was implemented as a model-tracing tutor which intervenes when students make errors and after completion of each problem, at which time the tutor scaffolds the students on post-problem reflection. The remediation is guided by probabilistic assessment of mastery and the interventions are adapted to the errors. The thesis also presents the results of the evaluation of the system which revealed that the gain scores of the experimental group were statistically significantly higher than those of

Medical students can teach communication skills - a mixed methods study of cross-year peer tutoring.

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Nomura, Osamu; Onishi, Hirotaka; Kato, Hiroyuki

2017-06-15

Cross-year peer tutoring (CYPT) of medical students is recognized as an effective learning tool. The aim of this study is to investigate the non-inferiority of the objective outcome of medical interview training with CYPT compared with the results of faculty-led training (FLT), and to explore qualitatively the educational benefits of CYPT. We conducted a convergent mixed methods study including a randomized controlled non-inferiority trial and two focus groups. For the CYPT group, teaching was led by six student tutors from year 5. In the FLT group, students were taught by six physicians. Focus groups for student learners (four tutees) and student teachers (six tutors) were conducted following the training session. One hundred sixteen students agreed to participate. The OSCE scores of the CYPT group and FLT group were 91.4 and 91.2, respectively. The difference in the mean score was 0.2 with a 95% CI of -1.8 to 2.2 within the predetermined non-inferiority margin of 3.0. By analyzing the focus groups, we extracted 13 subordinate concepts and formed three categories including 'Benefits of CYPT', 'Reflections of tutees and tutors' and 'Comparison with faculty', which affected the interactions among tutees, tutors, and faculty. CYPT is effective for teaching communication skills to medical students and for enhancing reflective learning among both tutors and tutees.

Focused didactic training for skills lab student tutors – which techniques are considered helpful?

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