Modelling period fertility: Schooling and intervals following a birth in Eastern Africa

We describe a regression-based approach to the modelling of age-, order-, and duration-specific period fertility, using retrospective survey data. The approach produces results that are free of selection biases and can be used to study differential fertility. It is applied to Demographic and Health Survey data for Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe to investigate differential trends in fertility by education. Parity progression fell and the intervals following each birth lengthened between the 1970s and 2000s in all four countries. Fertility fell most among women with secondary education. In contrast to other world regions, postponement of successive births for extended periods accounted for much of the initial drop in fertility in these African countries. However, family size limitation by women with secondary education in Ethiopia and Kenya and longer birth spacing in Zimbabwe also played significant roles. Thus, birth control is being adopted in Eastern Africa in response to diverse changes in fertility preferences.     

Divorce and parity progression following the death of a child: A register-based study from Finland

Most studies that have examined whether a child’s death influences parental relationship stability have used small-scale data sets and their results are inconclusive. A likely reason is that child loss affects not only the risk of parental separation, but also the risk of having another child. Hence parity progression and separation must be treated as two competing events in relation to child loss. The analysis in this paper used Finnish register data from 1971 to 2003, covering over 100,000 married couples whose durations of both first marriage and parenthood could be observed. We ran parity-specific Cox regressions in which process time started from the birth of each additional child. All marriages included women of childbearing age, none of whom had experienced any child death on entering the analysis. We find that child loss only modestly influences the divorce risk, whereas its effect on the risk of parity progression is considerable.     

语义角色精细化理论下的题元准则研究

在语义角色精细化理论框架下讨论了英语中的题元角色与论元之间的关系。对题元准则存在的问题进行了分析，介绍了佩里尼的语义角色精细化理论，区分了精细化角色和概括性角色。精细化角色和概括性角色之间存在一条精细化轨道，连接下位的精细化题元关系和上位的语义角色的同时，把精细化题元关系和论元的句法功能联系起来。在任何谓词结构内，每个可见论元都必须充当特定的语义角色，每个语义角色都必须指派给一个可见论元。并对角色精细化题元关系为题元准则具体问题的消解方案进行了讨论。     

幼儿园主题课程生成路径探索

当前我国幼儿园主题课程设计主要有主题内容（或概念）相关联导向、儿童学习与发展目标导向、儿童兴趣和经验导向三种常见思路。经实践检验，这些设计都存在一定的局限，要么不能体现儿童的学习主动性和课程决策权力，亦或忽视了教师课程参与的主体性。通过绘制兴趣图、概念图、材料图、活动记录图和发展目标图五步设计策略，不仅能解决当前主题课程设计的困惑，还能实现幼儿园课程设计的动态性和可持续发展性。     

Sex differences in the development of mild cognitive impairment and probable Alzheimer’s disease as predicted by hippocampal volume or white matter hyperintensities

This study examined biological sex differences in the development of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and probable Alzheimer’s disease (AD) development as predicted by changes in the hippocampus or white matter hyperintensities. A secondary data analysis of the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center Uniform Data Set was conducted. We selected samples of participants with normal cognition at baseline who progressed to MCI (n = 483) and those who progressed to probable AD (n = 211) to determine if hippocampal volume or white matter hyperintensities (WMH) at baseline predicted progression to probable AD or MCI and whether the rate of progression differed between men and women. The survival analyses indicated that changes in hippocampal volumes affected the progression to probable AD (HR = 0.535, 95% CI [0.300–0.953]) only among women. White men had an increased rate of progression to AD (HR = 4.396, CI [1.012–19.08]; HR = 4.665, 95% CI [1.072–20.29]) compared to men in other race and ethnic groups. Among women, increases in hippocampal volume ratio led to decreased rates of progressing to MCI (HR = 0.386, 95% CI [0.166–0.901]). Increased WMH among men led to faster progression to MCI (HR = 1.048. 95% CI [1.011–1.086]). Women and men who were older at baseline were more likely to progress to MCI. In addition, results from longitudinal analyses showed that women with a higher CDR global score, older age at baseline, or more disinhibition symptoms experienced higher odds of MCI development. Changes in hippocampal volumes affect the progression to or odds of probable AD (and MCI) more so among women than men, while changes in WMH affected the progression to MCI only among men.     

Personal sacrifice and corporate cultures: career progression for disabled staff in higher education

Disabled people are under-represented in higher education (HE), especially in senior posts. This article reports research on the perspectives of career progression into leadership held by disabled staff in one post-1992 university. Findings indicated that some participants were already engaged in leadership or aspired to such roles, and reported positive experiences. However, participants also experienced barriers to progression, including a lack of awareness of equality and diversity among managers and colleagues, inadequate professional development opportunities and the competitive organisational culture of management that could impact on their health and work–life balance. We conclude that disabled staff in HE do not yet have equal opportunities for progression into leadership roles compared with their non-disabled peers. There is a need for realignment of the culture of leadership and management to make it more compatible with the full inclusion of disabled staff in HE such that their unique contributions are valued.     

提炼嘉兴主题文化彰显禾城特色魅力——嘉兴城市主题文化建设构想

为了彰显嘉兴城市的特色魅力,必须提炼嘉兴主题文化。基于嘉兴城市文化的基本特点和嘉兴城市的独特元素,根据城市主题文化提炼的5个原则,嘉兴城市主题文化可以提炼为"棹歌会府,粽子都会",并可从三个方面来构建:一是"以‘棹歌升处,粽香天下’进行城市宣传,推介嘉兴历史文化名城的新形象";二是"以‘棹歌’、‘粽子’进行文化创意,打造嘉兴文化创意产业的新起点";三是"以‘棹歌’、‘粽子’进行视觉形象塑造,构筑嘉兴城市生活的新环境"。     

探索信息网络时代大学生素质教育的可行路径——以大学生主题素质教育网站为视角

面对信息网络时代给大学生素质教育带来的机遇和排战,合肥工业大学素质教育主题网站建设成效卓著,获得在校大学生和社会广泛认可,并在国内知名报刊网站获得推广应用。文章借此梳理素质教育主题网站建设经验,主要包括科学定位网络育人宗旨、厘清网络育人目标、彰显校园网络文化品牌、强化网络队伍建设、开展多彩丰富的网络活动,完善网络管理模式等。     

英语阐释性说明文层级连贯

针对英语专业作文中存在的主题不够突出、结构不合理、条理性不清等连贯性问题,结合低语境文化、主位推进模式、衔接手段等理论,提出英语阐释性说明文层级连贯作为解决方案。采用实证研究法,对英语专业实验班和对照班的阐释性说明文进行了层级连贯的横向和纵向对比研究。结果证明：层级连贯培训有助于学生作文水平的提高,培训后学生作文在主题、结构和条理性方面有明显进步。