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Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social research & statistics
A volume in the Chinese American Educational Research and
Development Association Book Series Series Editor Jinfa Cai,
University of Delaware The book is linked to the annual theme of
the 2008 CAERDA International Conference with contributing authors
serving as keynote speakers, invited panelists, paper presenters,
as well as specialists and educators in the field. The book
provides a most comprehensive description of and a theoretically
wellinformed and a scholarly cogent account of teaching and
learning Chinese in general and in the United States in particular.
It examines a wide range of important issues in Chinese teaching
and learning: current state in teaching Chinese as a Second
Language (TCSL) in the United States, US national standards for
learning foreign languages K-12, policy making about how to meet
the growing demand for Chinese language and cultural education with
regard to a national coordination of efforts, professional teacher
training in terms of the quantity and quality of Chinese language
teachers at all levels, promotion of early language learning,
characteristics of Chinese pedagogy, aspects of Chinese
linguistics, methods and methodology in teaching TCSL, techniques
and technology in Chinese language education, curriculum and
instruction in TCSL, cultural aspects of teaching Chinese as a
Second Language, issues in Chinese pedagogy, development of Chinese
as a Heritage Language (HL) and the issue of cultural identity for
bilingual/multilingual learners (particularly
bilingual/multilingual children), testing and evaluation in TCSL,
Chinese literacy and reading, approaches to instruction and program
design, etc.
This proceedings volume compiles and expands on selected and peer
reviewed presentations given at the 81st Annual Meeting of the
Psychometric Society (IMPS), organized by the University of North
Carolina at Greensboro, and held in Asheville, North Carolina, July
11th to 17th, 2016. IMPS is one of the largest international
meetings focusing on quantitative measurement in psychology,
education, and the social sciences, both in terms of participants
and number of presentations. The meeting built on the Psychometric
Society's mission to share quantitative methods relevant to
psychology, addressing a diverse set of psychometric topics
including item response theory, factor analysis, structural
equation modeling, time series analysis, mediation analysis,
cognitive diagnostic models, and multi-level models. Selected
presenters were invited to revise and expand their contributions
and to have them peer reviewed and published in this proceedings
volume. Previous volumes to showcase work from the Psychometric
Society's meetings are New Developments in Quantitative Psychology:
Presentations from the 77th Annual Psychometric Society Meeting
(Springer, 2013), Quantitative Psychology Research: The 78th Annual
Meeting of the Psychometric Society (Springer, 2015), Quantitative
Psychology Research: The 79th Annual Meeting of the Psychometric
Society, Madison, Wisconsin, 2014 (Springer, 2015), and
Quantitative Psychology Research: The 80th Annual Meeting of the
Psychometric Society, Beijing, 2015 (Springer, 2016).
Midway through the eighteenth century, the rate of growth for the
world's population was roughly at zero. Immediately after World War
II, it was just above 2 percent. Ever since, it has fallen
steadily. This new book, the latest offering from a distinguished
expert on international economics, tells readers what this
stagnation or fall in population will mean--economically,
politically, and historically--for the nations of the world.
W. W. Rostow not only traces the whole global arc of this "great
population spike"--he looks far beyond it. What he sees will
interest anyone curious about what is in store for the world's
financial and governmental systems. The Great Population Spike and
After: Reflections on the 21st Century contends that, as the
decline in population now occurring in the industrialized world
spreads to all of the presently developing countries, the global
rate of population will fall to the "zero" level circa 2100.
(Indeed, with the exception of Africa south of the Sahara, it could
reach "zero" long before then.) This being so, how will it be
possible to maintain full employment and social services with a
decelerating population? What will societies do when the proportion
of the working force (as now defined) diminishes radically in
relation to the population of poor or elderly dependents? How will
the countries of the world confront subsequent decreases in
population-related investment?
In answering these queries, this bold study asserts that the
United States is not the "last remaining superpower" but the
"critical margin" without whose support no constructive action on
the world scene can succeed. Rostow takes the view that world peace
will depend on ourgovernment's ability to assume responsibly this
"critical margin" role. Further, he argues that, over a period of
time, the execution of this strategy on the international scene
will require a bipartisan, relentless effort to solve the
combustible social problems that weaken not only our cities but our
whole society.
This volume showcases selected conference papers addressing the
sustainable future of ASEAN from the perspectives of business and
social science disciplines. In addressing the 17 Sustainable
Developments Goals (SDGs) envisioned by the United Nations in the
domains of environment, health and well-being, posing potential
means of reducing inequalities globally, the authors target
specific issues and challenges confronting the fast-growing region
of ASEAN and present suggestions for co-operation and commitment
from governments, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and society
at large, in line with the ASEAN Vision 2020. Papers are selected
from the 3rd International Conference on the Future of ASEAN
(ICoFA) 2019, organised by Universiti Teknologi MARA in Malaysia,
whose conference theme "Charting the Sustainable Future of ASEAN"
enables intellectual discourse on sustainability issues from
business and the social sciences, as well as science and
technology. The selection of papers is published in two volumes,
comprising scholarly and practical insights into sustainability in
ASEAN. This first volume of papers from business and social science
scholars will be of interest to researchers and policymakers
interested in sustainability developments in the ASEAN region.
This book introduces statistical techniques for the particular
needs of historians. The approach is practical and applied;
alternative ways of resolving methodological problems are worked
through. The emphasis is on applying the fundamentals of
statistical theory to the specific research interests of historians
and available historical sources. A special feature of the book is
a discussion of the historical evolution of statistical techniques
as a means of understanding their current applications and
interpretations.
This book focuses on 'research on research methodologies' - an area
rarely addressed in social entrepreneurship. Methodological debates
are integral to the quest for knowledge and to advancing theories
and practices in any field, and, as a multi-disciplinary and
emerging field, social entrepreneurship cannot avoid such debates.
Providing a fresh perspective on social entrepreneurship research,
the book includes contributions from diverse disciplinary settings,
e.g. sociology, psychology, social work, anthropology, public
policy, economics and management, and discusses the 'methodological
challenges' of practice as well as social entrepreneurship
research. Rather than favouring any particular method or
methodological approach, it acknowledges the diversity of
methodological approaches needed to reveal the nuances of social
entrepreneurship and promote new knowledge and practices in this
promising field.
This volume presents a comprehensive overview of methodological
issues and empirical methods of practice-oriented research. It
examines questions regarding the scope and boundaries of
practice-oriented approaches and practice theory. It discusses the
potential advantages and disadvantages of the diversity resulting
from the use of these approaches, as well as method and
methodology-related issues. The specific questions explored in this
volume are: What consequences are linked to the application of a
praxeological perspective in empirical research when it comes to
the choice of methods? Is there such a thing as an ideal path to
follow in praxeological empirical research? What relationship is
there between qualitative and quantitative approaches? What
differentiates practice-based social research from other
perspectives and approaches such as discourse analysis or
hermeneutics? The contributions in this book discuss these
questions either from a methodological point of view or from a
reflective perspective on empirical research practices.
This book details how quantification can serve both as evidence and
as an instrument of government, whether when dealing with
statistics on employment, occupational health and economic
governance, or when developing public management or target-driven
policies. In the process, it presents a thought-provoking homage to
Alain Desrosieres, who pioneered ways to study large numbers and
the politics underlying them. It opens with a summary of
Desrosieres's contributions to the field in which several
generations of researchers detail how this statistician and
historian profoundly influenced them. This tribute, based on
personal testimonies, bears witness to the vitality of the school
of thought and analytical framework Desrosieres initiated. Next, a
collection of essays explores the statistical argument in the
neoliberal era, examining issues such as counting the homeless in
Europe, measuring the performance of public services, and
quantifying the effects of public action on the unemployed in
France. The third part details the uses of quantification. It
reveals that although statistics are frequently used to the
advantage of those in power, they can also play a vital role in
challenging and resisting both the conventions underlying the
measurements as well as the measurements themselves.Featuring the
work of economists, historians, political scientists, sociologists,
and statisticians, this title provides readers with a thoughtful
look at an influential figure in the history of statistics. It also
shows how statistics are used to direct public policy, the degree
of conflict that is possible in their production, and the disputes
that can develop around their uses.
There has been a data rush in the past decade brought about by
online communication and, in particular, social media (Facebook,
Twitter, Youtube, among others), which promises a new age of
digital enlightenment. But social data is compromised: it is being
seized by specific economic interests, it leads to a fundamental
shift in the relationship between research and the public good, and
it fosters new forms of control and surveillance. Compromised Data:
From Social Media to Big Data explores how we perform critical
research within a compromised social data framework. The expert,
international lineup of contributors explores the limits and
challenges of social data research in order to invent and develop
new modes of doing public research. At its core, this collection
argues that we are witnessing a fundamental reshaping of the social
through social data mining.
This unique study traces the life cycle of a counterculture commune
of the late 1960s as part of a regional network and national
movement. Through exhaustive field research in a setting viewed as
a virtual social laboratory, it provides fascinating insights into
many social concerns involving order and disorder in revolutionary
and evolutionary change. It examines such issues as conflict,
violence, stratification, and interdependence in the
self-proclaimed cooperative, peaceful, classless, and
self-sufficient new society. The reasons for the many failures as
well as successes of experimental efforts are outlined, along with
enduring impacts on participants and the surrounding region.
Volume 20 of "Research in Social Stratification and Mobility"
continues to remain at the forefront of the diverse group of social
scientists who study social inequality and is now the official
publication of the Social Stratification Research Group of the
International Sociological Association (RC-28). This issue features
a comprehensive retrospective on the 40 years of contributions to
social stratification research made by the late William Sewell and
the Wisconsin Longitudinal Survey, including an all-inclusive
bibliography of publications. Other contributions address the
growing differences between workers with full-time jobs and various
categories of the underemployed (in Israel, the United States and
Germany), social mobility in Korea and Sweden, subjective responses
to social inequality and the social consequences of status
inconsistency, and analyses of class consciousness and growing
wealth inequality in the OECD.
This introductory book enables researchers and students of all
backgrounds to compute interrater agreements for nominal data. It
presents an overview of available indices, requirements, and steps
to be taken in a research project with regard to reliability,
preceded by agreement. The book explains the importance of
computing the interrater agreement and how to calculate the
corresponding indices. Furthermore, it discusses current views on
chance expected agreement and problems related to different
research situations, so as to help the reader consider what must be
taken into account in order to achieve a proper use of the indices.
The book offers a practical guide for researchers, Ph.D. and master
students, including those without any previous training in
statistics (such as in sociology, psychology or medicine), as well
as policymakers who have to make decisions based on research
outcomes in which these types of indices are used.
This book is open access under a CC BY-NC 2.5 license. This book
describes the extensive contributions made toward the advancement
of human assessment by scientists from one of the world's leading
research institutions, Educational Testing Service. The book's four
major sections detail research and development in measurement and
statistics, education policy analysis and evaluation, scientific
psychology, and validity. Many of the developments presented have
become de-facto standards in educational and psychological
measurement, including in item response theory (IRT), linking and
equating, differential item functioning (DIF), and educational
surveys like the National Assessment of Educational Progress
(NAEP), the Programme of international Student Assessment (PISA),
the Progress of International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) and
the Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). In addition to
its comprehensive coverage of contributions to the theory and
methodology of educational and psychological measurement and
statistics, the book gives significant attention to ETS work in
cognitive, personality, developmental, and social psychology, and
to education policy analysis and program evaluation. The chapter
authors are long-standing experts who provide broad coverage and
thoughtful insights that build upon decades of experience in
research and best practices for measurement, evaluation, scientific
psychology, and education policy analysis. Opening with a chapter
on the genesis of ETS and closing with a synthesis of the
enormously diverse set of contributions made over its 70-year
history, the book is a useful resource for all interested in the
improvement of human assessment.
School districts today face increasing calls for accountability
during a time when budgets are stretched and students' needs have
become increasingly complex. The teacher's responsibility is to
educate younger people, but now more than ever, teachers face
demands on a variety of fronts. In addition to teaching academic
content, schools are responsible for students' performance on
state-wide tests. They are also asked to play an increasingly
larger role in children's well-being, including their nutritional
needs and social and emotional welfare. Teachers have shown
themselves to be more than capable of taking up such challenges,
but what price is paid for the increasing demands we are placing on
our schools? Understanding Teacher Stress in an Age of
Accountability is about the nature of teachers stress and the
resources they can employ to cope with it. Accountability is a
two-way street and the authors in this volume suggest remedies for
reducing teacher stress and in all likelihood increasing student
learning-greater administrative support, more and better
instructional materials, specialized resources targeted at
demanding children, parental support, and professional recognition.
Readers will discover that lack of funding, low pay, concerns about
academic performance and student misbehavior, and increased public
and governmental scrutiny are not exclusive to the United States.
In this volume, the third in a series on Research on Stress and
Coping in Education, authors from Australia, Turkey, Malaysia, and
the Netherlands sound the same alarms, post the same warnings, and
draw similarly disturbing conclusions.
The book covers all important topics in the area of Survival
Analysis. Each topic has been covered by one or more chapters
written by internationally renowned experts. Each chapter provides
a comprehensive and up-to-date review of the topic. Several new
illustrative examples have been used to demonstrate the
methodologies developed. The book also includes an exhaustive list
of important references in the area of Survival Analysis.
.Includes up-to-date reviews on many important topics.
.Chapters written by many internationally renowned experts.
.Some Chapters provide completely new methodologies and
analyses.
.Includes some new data and methods of analyzing them.
Rethinking School-University Partnerships: A New Way Forward
provides educational leaders in K-12 schools and colleges of
education with insight, advice, and direction into the task of
creating partnerships. In current times, colleges of education and
local school districts need each other like never before. School
districts struggle with pipeline, recruitment, and retention
issues. Colleges of education face declining enrollment and a
shifting educational landscape that fundamentally changes the way
that teachers are trained and what local school districts expect
their teachers to be able to do. It is with these overlapping
constraints and converging interests that partnerships emerge as a
foundational strategy for strengthening the education of our
teachers. With nearly 80 contributors from 16 states (and Jamaica)
representing 39 educational institutions, the partnerships
described in this book are different from the ways in which
colleges of education and school districts have traditionally
worked with one another. In the past, these loose relationships
centered primarily on student teaching and/or field experience
placements. In this arrangement, the relationship was directed
towards ensuring that the local schools were amenable to hosting
students from the college of education so that the student/
candidate could complete the requirements to earn a teaching
license. In our view, this paradigm needs to be enlarged and
shifted.
This book focuses on human adaptive thermal comfort in the building
environment and the balance between reducing building air
conditioning energy and improving occupants' thermal comfort. It
examines the mechanism of human thermal adaptation using a newly
developed adaptive heat balance model, and presents pioneering
findings based on an on online survey, real building investigation,
climate chamber experiments, and theoretical models. The book
investigates three critical issues related to human thermal
adaptation: (i) the dynamics of human thermal adaptation in the
building environment; (ii) the basic rules and effects of human
physiological acclimatization and psychological adaptation; and
(iii) a new, adaptive, heat balance model describing behavioral
adjustment, physiological acclimatization, psychological
adaptation, and physical improvement effects. Providing the basis
for establishing a more reasonable adaptive thermal comfort model,
the book is a valuable reference resource for anyone interested in
future building thermal environment evaluation criteria.
This book provides an in-depth analysis of public opinion patterns
among Muslims, particularly in the Arab world. On the basis of data
from the World Values Survey, the Arab Barometer Project and the
Arab Opinion Index, it compares the dynamics of Muslim opinion
structures with global publics and arrives at social scientific
predictions of value changes in the region. Using country factor
scores from a variety of surveys, it also develops composite
indices of support for democracy and a liberal society on a global
level and in the Muslim world, and analyzes a multivariate model of
opinion structures in the Arab world, based on over 40 variables
from 12 countries in the Arab League and covering 67% of the total
population of the Arab countries. While being optimistic about the
general, long-term trend towards democracy and the resilience of
Arab and Muslim civil society to Islamism, the book also highlights
anti-Semitic trends in the region and discusses them in the larger
context of xenophobia in traditional societies. In light of the
current global confrontation with radical Islamism, this book
provides vital material for policy planners, academics and think
tanks alike.
This open access book addresses three themes which have been
central to Leydesdorff's research: (1) the dynamics of science,
technology, and innovation; (2) the scientometric
operationalization of these concept; and (3) the elaboration in
terms of a Triple Helix of university-industry-government
relations. In this study, I discuss the relations among these
themes. Using Luhmann's social-systems theory for modelling meaning
processing and Shannon's theory for information processing, I show
that synergy can add new options to an innovation system as
redundancy. The capacity to develop new options is more important
for innovation than past performance. Entertaining a model of
possible future states makes a knowledge-based system increasingly
anticipatory. The trade-off between the incursion of future states
on the historical developments can be measured using the
Triple-Helix synergy indicator. This is shown, for example, for the
Italian national and regional systems of innovation.
As a result of the AIDS epidemic, many nations around the world
have faced the demands of caring for a particularly vulnerable
population of children, the orphans of parents who have died of
AIDS or whose caregivers are terminally ill from the disease.
Overcoming AIDS: Lessons Learned from Uganda offers an in-depth
exploration of this global issue and provides a broad focus on
evolving a constructive response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. This
collaborative resource is the fourth in the Research in Global
Child Advocacy book series, and it offers readers a glimpse into
the experience of HIV/AIDS infected and affected people from the
perspective of researchers, policy makers, and professionals who
diligently work toward crafting a framework for action that is
integrated across disciplines. Despite the enormity and intensity
of the problem, chapter authors share a commitment to advocate for
a better world in which social and economic disparities do not
preclude children from experiencing a future that is bright with
potential opportunities and hope.
This book argues that the neoliberal globalisation of higher
education faces a need for recalibration. In light of increased
concerns from universities in cultivating globalisation, this
volume brings together a multi-ethnic and multilingual team of
researchers who argue that the continued development of
internationalized education now requires new research and
practices. As university leaders seek to build the best programs to
help students to go abroad, they can face a number of challenges -
risk management, negotiating with diverse partners, designing rich
experience-based learning and the hopes, fears and limitations of
the students themselves. Consequently, the authors argue that
changes are particularly important given the current US-centric and
UK-centric structural readjustments to globalization policies
across all fields of higher education and knowledge production.
This multi-perspectival edited collection will appeal to students
and scholars of global education, globalization and international
education.
Highlighting the conceptual work at the heart of Pierre Bourdieu's
reflexive sociology, this cutting edge collection operationalizes
Bourdieusian concepts in field analysis. Offering a unique range of
explorations and reflections utilizing field analysis, the eighteen
chapters by prominent Bourdieusian scholars and early career
scholars synthesize key insights and challenges scholars face when
going 'beyond the fields we know'. The chapters offer examples from
discipline contexts as diverse as cultural studies, poetry, welfare
systems, water management, education, journalism and surfing and
provide demonstrations of theorizing within practical examples of
field analysis. One of the foremost social philosophers and
sociologists of the twentieth century, Bourdieu is widely known in
cultural studies and education and his approaches are increasingly
being taken up in health, social work, anthropology, family
studies, journalism, communication studies and other disciplines
where an analysis of the interplay between individuals and social
structures is relevant. With its unique interdisciplinary focus,
this book provides a useful guide to doing field analysis and
working with Bourdieusian methods research, as well as key reading
for methodology courses at post-graduate level.
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