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The importance of turbulence in assessing the impact of introducing new technologies
18 January 2012
The Impact conundrum concerns how it might be measured. How does one quantify impact?
Impact can have two distinct effects; one concerning input impact and the other output impact.
The first relates to how the 'shock of the new affects' the changes of behaviour and the speed at which change occurs in behaviour.
The second is the improvement in outcomes set against the degree of turbulence caused in both breadth and length as a result. A positive response on either is all that is required for an overall positive impact.
Graphically it would appear as shown above in a formula
Impact assesses the striking force between physical objects which should cause an equal and opposite reaction, yet in e-learning terms, 'technology in action' in this sense is metaphysical and therefore beyond a physical laws and measurement. Capturing a sense of how a teacher feels (excited, challenged, enthralled, bored, disappointed) becomes the language of impact. Impact is measured by the emotive responses recorded by those affected. That language is based on the experience summed up in the rate and profundity of change against the benefits felt and the degree of turbulence caused in getting through the change. Attitude itself is a critical factor in the degree of take up and success engendered.
It is possible that we have been deceived, in the past, in our search for the impact of technology, expecting it to be physically manifested and overt in everything teachers do. It could be that successful impact is evidenced by the opposite; technology use being one element in many artfully constructed student-centred learning experiences that are part of everyday practice such that the technology is not really seen nor acknowledged, simply being used when deemed appropriate for learning as planned. This appears to be the case with the use of Moodle VLEs to pick one example.
Perhaps only new or troublesome or unsatisfactory technologies with little immediate application to practice remain on the surface and open to view, and thus to questioning through the turbulence they cause to the smooth running of the curriculum? The greatest impact of technology actually occurs where its use is not seen, nor recognised and only emerges through prompts that promote reflection on practice. The value of technology is not in the way it alters the nature of education but alters its delivery and the structure of our working day.
Perhaps a better test to frame impact is to consider how teachers and support staff might work without the support of technology assess how long the College would remain open if technology were removed.
Social technologies in education and a new Velvet Revolution
It used to be that for the numbers of students to teach and the time and resources available, learning was done on a group basis, characterised by all starting and finishing in the same place and time and following roughly the same journey. This method encouraged the development of convergent thinking as a mental discipline and a tool for further learning. The application of learning technology affords personalised learning behaviour and a unique learning experience for each student, based on the context of their situation and preferences. It also supports and encourages Divergent thinking as an equal partner, where imagination and the personal perspective can be captured and acknowledged.
This has led over the last few years to a 'velvet revolution' in education, where the changes are so smooth they are hardly felt. The introduction of Social Media into mainstream life and its possible impact on education is a case in point and is one of a long line of examples of education picking up on lifestyle changes and adapting them to learning rather than seeing them created within the education world.
It has led many to question what the changes are because it is difficult to disentangle personal behaviour choices from the orthodox approaches to the application of education as a work process. There are persistent voices clamouring for a method to measure Impact. But it is possible that we have been deceived in our search for the impact of technology, expecting it to be physically manifested and overt in everything teachers do. Nice neat clear edges, such that the application of technology can be seen as an overlay. But it seems that what we might call successful impact is evidenced by the opposite; technology use being one element in many artfully constructed student-centred learning experiences that are part of everyday practice, bleeding across all aspects of life, such that the technology is not really seen nor acknowledged, simply being used when deemed appropriate for learning as planned.
Now, with the Web 2.0 generation we see this going even further. We are facing the next major shift in the pedagogical application of technology. It is based on the realisation that when personalised learning is combined with the new social media, and the experiences are shared in common, it creates a collective consciousness that can, when directed by a teacher, be described as learning. It isn't that people haven't formed informal networks before; it happens in every group and project. The difference is the speed, immediacy and granularity of thoughts and ideas gives a new degree of frequency, leading to greater intimacy and nuance to that understanding. An illustration of this would be a book club who meet each week to discuss a book. And the same group tweeting each other as they read and react to each chapter or twist in the plot. There is less summary and more formative opinion that may need correcting with each turn of the page.
Social media can be capture nothing more than the daily banalities, but when focussed or given a deeper purpose and guided, it can stimulate thinking that converts to constant modified understanding which settles (until the next message) into learning. In part this has happened with other technologies in the administration of the learning but now we see this activity moving into the core of the learning itself.
This is the new frontier for learning technologies; learning being seen as a the development of a collective consciousness of a group of like minded students on a given subject based on their shared and on-going personal experience. We will need to develop personal learning space for students, which will include the redesign of curriculum delivery to allow all the confederation of learning experiences, but formally recognised as learning rather than social and guided by the teacher.
It is the opposite to traditional teaching which is the delivery of a collective truth, learnt as individuals, by cohort (class).
Facebook for example is a social tool in action but a collective conscience by experience. But it lacks a direction of summary points that a teacher might provide which is why it is more social than learning but it has both elements. Without a teacher, the learning could be described as 'accidental' and is no less valid for this. The teacher is like the conductor of an orchestra; it suggests a much subtler arrangement in leadership of the route, and the nuances of insight picked up on the way. This does not change factual learning but the understanding and application of facts. It supports both convergent thinking and divergent thinking.
So what might be the immediate ramifications for e-learning?
1. What is intriguing is how successful this approach is to learning as students become more adept at manipulating the technology on the one hand, and the degree of intellectual maturity they bring to a process that implies an ever increasing degree of independence and self management in all technological interactions of which education is but one.
2. Courses will develop a degree of organic life that will move from the peripheral to the mainstream, ebb and flow for the duration of the course., in part grown and given direction by the group.
3. Learning becomes more democratised but by consensual movement rather than by voting.
Students are gently but inevitably coerced into considerations of learning in the context of their life and circumstances. What is learnt is fined tuned to each individual in the group.
4. A new accommodation of curriculum design is required to accommodate these changes.
5. The changes will be sufficiently disruptive to alter the curriculum design.
6. The new understanding will include confrontations by the student of their approaches and attitudes to their learning. Social media often contains emotive communications because how one feels about learning is the operant motivation to communicate to others.
7. Issues concerning the responsibility for learning to the outcomes agreed for the course might be compromised id teachers aren't able to keep control of both pace and direction of learning that concludes at an agreed point, time and cost. These remain core teacher tasks.
What teachers now need to do
1. Don't give up on the core values of what is good teaching and learning. These technologies do not replace any of them, they simply offer new ways to express them that can be more engaging, exciting, interest and personal to the student.
2. Social media will not replace VLEs but will add another layer on top of what is already available. All formal learning requires a degree of home hosting so the teacher can control pace and direction (see above), but the ubiquitous nature of social media will allow student new ways and methods to express their learning.
This isn't e-learning as such. I would rather call it simply 'modern learning'.
08 December 2011
How we manipulate ideas is a critical part of mastering and learning from them. Ideas can be tested and considered an through a process of revision, discounting and revising come to a considered conclusion that has a sense of being an absolute position. This type of thinking works not the basis of rational thought leads to inescapable conclusions that cant be improved until the component parts that led to the conclusion are themselves revised. This is the process of convergent thinking.; all paths lead to one conclusion. It is often described as the domain of the scientists because of the the link to rational deduction and the formulation of laws.
If convergent thinking is the basis of rational thought, would its opposite be a definition of chaotic thinking? What is Divergent thought and is it of value?
In short, it is the opposite of convergence. Divergent thinkers tend to see things differently.
Divergent thinkers rethinking the problem to find novel ways to define the problem or novel ways to solve it.
The conclusion to this is that the best thinkers are those capable of doing both and being able to bring both thinking methods into play as required dependent upon the situation confronted. In the past it seems convergent thinking was valued and seen as the arbiter of intelligence. So it seems that each is equally valuable in personal development and they are the ying and yang of learning. Another approach to divergent thought is the use of the imagination to 'see' problems in different ways. An example would be to think of how many uses one can find for a paperclip. Divergent thinking relates to imagination, inspiration, and bringing subjective experience to a problem. Is Divergent thinking the home of the artist and the dreamer?
A review of the literature has identified 5 thinking skills that are used to gauge the ability to think divergently. They are:
Fluency: The ability to generate ideas & meaningful responses
Flexibility: The ability to repurpose ideas
Originality: The capacity to produce rare and novel ideas
Elaboration: The capacity to embellish and develop ideas
It is possible that group learning tends to favour convergent thinking learning because the group will tend to look for and draw towards common ideas.
The ability to personal learning space to support individual and highly contextualised learning encourages divergent thinking. It allows the student to identify accidental or informal learning, to contextualise this into their unique social and work based circumstances, to see for themselves what interests them to enquire further and where deficiencies in learning are holding back professional effectiveness. In short, personal learning space encourages and accommodates divergent thinkers.
Divergent thinkers traditionally scored less in intelligence testing but now, the imaginative side of intelligence is finding in a renascence. With personal learning space, technology has become sufficiently refined and flexible to accommodate more easily the divergent aspects of thinking, capturing, marshalling and presenting the results.
Caroli M. & Sagone E. (2011) Creative thinking & big five factors of personality measured in Italian schoolchildren: Faculty of Educational Science - University of Catania. Italy
24 November 2011
Now e-learning is 11 years old, I wanted to know how teachers now felt about technology in teaching and to what degree our attitude to technology in education has changed. How might that affect what and how we train teachers both in the initial and ongoing stage.
The study is funded by LSIS and has so far involved 700 teachers responding to 17 descriptions of technology in action and how they feel about technology. Instead of asking about the processes of technology we wanted to know how teachers felt about their use of technology in teaching.
The results are illuminating. Because we asked teachers to examine their feelings, we were in essence asking them about their confidence levels. In response to this emotive approach, respondents felt the need to justify, explain, defend or champion their choices with over 93.000 words of free response in addition to their responses, and, with their choices gave us 247,000 in 700 individual stories of current practice in using technology. This Paper summarises the main points of those stories and what the implications might be for those who train teachers, support and manage their continued development and offer training.
Confidence emerges in our study as the critical measurement in the effective use of technology. We think e-confidence and e-maturity are closely related and one is a measurement of the other. Teachers who are confident about and use technology in their private lives are curious how that use can transfer into their teaching practice. For many the problem lies not in technology generally but how it might be applied to purposeful pedagogy. 10 years ago, teachers were new to digital technology and anxious about how it might change working patterns and indeed being in work at all.
When it comes to expert help, teachers come to technology with curiosity to see how it might help teaching and learning rather than being passive and waiting to be directed how to use it. Training today needs to be more about help in applying technology. The days of directing how software works, shown in abstract seem to be over. A level of confidence in confronting technology to use in teaching is more important than the level of knowledge about specific technologies.
Contrary perhaps to how organisational cultures may want it, the technology used in learning is fragmenting and is supporting highly individualised patterns of use. Increasingly this involves the use of technology owned by the students. The common factor that holds the creative chaos that could ensue together is the application of the constant values of good teaching & learning and it is evident throughout the narratives how well teachers attempt to describe the use of technology in terms of its ability to serve teaching and learning. It provides the compass bearings that make this apparent jigsaw of technology – as it is the combination of software/apps and the technologies themselves that create the possibilities we see as manifest in the narratives. The uniform and regularised use of large, centralised technology hosted by the college has its place but it is no longer the only game in town. Equally there is no one way to use technology. 'Best practice' is perhaps better now put aside and replaced with 'great practice in a given circumstance'. Teachers are very good at taking the essence of a great idea and reformatting it to their own circumstances (although this may not be happening as it should). This fragmentation of technology and ideas for its use reminds us of the value of Divergent Thinking and the power of creative thinking that is such an important part of the skills and abilities demanded by HE and Governments. The uniqueness of this move towards personal journeys supports divergence and allows 'a hundred flowers to bloom'. Instead of teachers being told there is one way and 'best practice' means 'the only practice', we are being told of great or at least promising practice in given circumstances.
A copy of the full Paper is attached by clicking on the title
Why reflection on what we do as teachers is important according to Geoff Petty.
13 February 2011
Paul Manning, Kirsty Bryant and I met Geoff Petty in London a couple of weeks back. This from the handout he gave to the audience, based in pat on what he said in his presentation. The following is a direct lift in which he places reflection central to any enterprise in improving performance. It is a great idea that we each have out own 'theory in use' He draws heavily on Donald Schon and is cycle of reflective thinking.
This from the horse's mouth.
"Every teacher and every learner has a theory about learning. You are no exception and you will have a set of beliefs, ideas, and assumptions about the nature of learning, and teaching. You will believe that certain practices bring about learning, and certain others don't. You will use this theory both to plan your lessons, and to decide what to do while you teach. Schön called this your 'theory-in-use'. Never mind what you might write in an essay or tell your tutor, it is your 'theory-in-use' which guides what you do, and informs you as you plan and teach your lessons.
If you ask yourself 'how shall I teach this topic' you will consider your 'theory-in-use' to help you decide. If a student started playing up in one of your lessons, you would use your 'theory-in-use' to decide what to do about it. If a lesson did not go well, it would be your 'theory-in-use' that you would use to explain to yourself why it went badly, and to decide how to make that lesson, or the next one, go better.
Your theory-in-use is:
1. What you believe learning to be, and how you believe teachers can bring learning about.
that leads to...
2. Your lesson plans, problem solving in the classroom, explanations for what worked and what didn't in past lessons etc
that leads to...
3. How you teach
As your 'theory-in-use' guides your every action it is clearly very important. If it faithfully describes the reality of how your students learn, then it will be an accurate guide for you, and you will be able to teach very well. If it doesn't describe that reality very well, then you will never teach effectively, except sometimes by accident! It is clearly crucial to get this 'theory-in-use' as right, and as comprehensive, as you can get it. So how can you go about that?
One way of course is to do what you are doing right now - to read about learning and teaching. Another is to attend an initial teacher training course. These can help, but in the end you must integrate this learning into your own 'theory-in-use' for it to affect what you do. This requires that you make your own sense, of these learning experiences, and work out how to teach as a consequence. For example, to learn about Maslow's theory of motivation, and even to write about it is one thing, to integrate it into your 'theory-in-use' is quite another. That would require you to work out what Maslow's theory means in practice for your students, and then to use this understanding to improve your student's motivation. That is very demanding, and will require much thought and practice!
In the end you will only develop a fully effective 'theory-in-use' by teaching, and most particularly by reflecting on your experience of teaching. It is important, and difficult, to go right round the reflective learning cycle as described by Donal Schön; just doing and reviewing is not enough!
As you reflect your 'theory-in-use' improves and so you become not only more effective, but also more adaptable and better able to solve problems. Effective teachers are always changing what they do, this is because they are continually learning how better to teach".
Where does knowledge reside?
12 January 2011
I was listening to a podcast given by Diana Louthenberg, a teacher in the USA. She started with the reminder that schools and colleges are no longer a place where knowledge resides and where students need to go in order to get it from the teachers. She then went on to argue that we need to teach students that they come to college in order to deal with getting things wrong. She continued on the lines that there is no universal truth, there is no one way to understand anything, there is no common experience and we can no longer think about standardising student presentation of learning, so wrong in the sense of what we make of the world is redundant as an idea. The use of portfolios is an attempt to individualise learning by allowing the capture of accidental and contextualised learning to influence what is learnt more formally. By getting things wrong what she meant was that learners need to be able to present their own experience and understanding and teachers need to help them do this in a way that is authentic to the learner. In other words we can no longer say there isa right way of presenting experiential learning. Perhaps getting things wrong is the way we can all learn and getting things right is simply the outcome of experience. To be fair the awarding bodies don't tell us that we can only teach in a particular way although the use of guided learning hours still suggests that the classroom is the only space where teaching can take place and is the sole factor in ensuring quality learning.
Yesterday at the 'learning without frontiers' conference, Lord Puttnam stated something that those working in or in e-learning have known for some time; that simply using technology to enhance orthodox teaching and learning will never be transformational and we have to use the new technology to change the way we go about teaching and learning. Innovation is doing new things in new ways and colleges that rise to that challenge will survive and prosper.
Laufenberg is part of the TED podcast series available from itunes.
Proceedings from 'Learning without frontiers' is not yet published.
31 December 2010
I know John Stone who wrote the article below in FE News. I have sat with him a few times in meetings and presentations. He even attended one that the College gave on the subject of staff development. I thought I would quote heavily from his article that I have referenced at the end because what he says chimes so clearly with the new approach to individual accountability of staff for improvement and a move away from the herd movement that has been around for so long. He writes the piece in the main to drum up business for Learning & Skills Network business of which he is the Chief Executive. I was seconded to the LSC for 3 months a few years back.
He cites new insight into what motivates people at work and it is is much around the new professionalism model. His argument reminds me of the historical movement from mass education (large classes in rank and file with rote learning at the same pace on a common linear progression) to more personal education; always desirable but not possible until of course new technologies have made the idiosyncratic approach possible. The point is that personalisation has always been a good idea but only recently has the means to support it been available. We now have the technologies to do the same with staff as group based development gives way to individual development, literally person by person using 'technology for the one'.
The first part of John Stone's article deals with the challenge and meaning of 'outstanding' and is therefore of interest to us. He writes this as if it is a personal message to College leaders
He says:
"Until very recently, FE leaders had focused on 'navigating their ships' to the nearest beacon of an Ofsted rating of 'outstanding'. But what does 'outstanding' mean under the new Government? For instance, does grade 1 actually deliver security in the light of recent changes or is what you deliver more important than how well? Is 'outstanding' still a goal for leaders, managers and staff to aim for? Reassuringly the answer is yes, but what we mean by 'outstanding' has changed: it is no longer just what is required by Ofsted. How your students, staff, employers and the local community rank you is now just as important, particularly as learners begin having to contribute more of their own money to fund their FE studies. To survive and thrive, colleges need to be truly outstanding in the eyes of all of these stakeholders – and that means motivating these groups well enough that they invest their future (and money) in you and are willing to go that extra mile when required. However, in an age of 'bigger society', all of your stakeholders will be looking for a clear return on their investment.
Why invest in leadership now?
For colleges to be truly outstanding in this new, wider sense of the word, they fundamentally need three things:
1. the leadership ability to spot the best way forward and forcefully turn the ship when needed;
2. motivated staff with the autonomy and skills to make these turns as quickly and effectively as possible; and
3. the ability to hear and act on what learners want and to make quick and sometimes tough calls when needed".
In his second point he describes 'motivation in action': the ability of staff to be agile enough to adapt to change quickly.
He goes on to develop this as follows:
"Colleges do this by asking tough questions:
1. how do you motivate staff when you can not even guarantee them a future beyond the next restructure?
2. how do you tap into and fully realise the commercial potential of staff knowledge of what employers and learners really think, want and need in a way that both drives the college forward and also rewards and motivates this sharing?
3. how do you ask staff at every level to go that extra mile and keep the emotional commitment, so that when changes are required staff make them outstandingly well"?
In asking these questions he places motivation as critical to this but it also requires the mental conditioning that comes from professional development as opposed to staff development. This is another straw in the wind of the emergence of the two types of development where the one (Professional development) conditions and prepares for the other (Staff development)
He goes on to discuss some of these issues but in answering the question about the motivation of staff, he reduces it down to three new approaches. I have asked Sarah Marsh to add the book to the Library catalogue that he refers to.
He continues:
"A new approach to motivation
In his recent bestseller on motivation (Drive – the surprising truth about what motivates us, 2010), Daniel Pink brings together 10 years of evidence and research on what really motivates, engages and empowers staff to become the key drivers to organisational success.
Traditional carrot-and-stick motivators no longer work and, more often, do harm. Instead a new approach to motivation is required that incorporates three key drivers:
1. mastery – the urge to professionally develop and get better at something that matters
2. autonomy – the desire to direct our own lives, and to be trusted and empowered to do so
3, purpose – the intrinsic motivation to add value, to do what we do in a way that makes a real difference, whether that is to learners, to other staff, or to the wider community
As human beings we are all susceptible to making emotional decisions and then rationalising them. Think of the last interview you did, purchase you made, manager you decided to work hard for. Pause for a moment and think of someone who motivated the best out of you, who got you to emotionally decide to go that extra mile. What was it that motivated you to do that?
Almost certainly, words that spring to mind will include trust, respect, clarity of goals and the autonomy to reach them. Organisations that achieve these values enjoy clear delegation of responsibility and accountability – rather than the dumping of tasks – and tend to go on to sustain, develop and empower their workforce through outcome-focused one-to-one coaching".
Stone argues for staff to be given space and time to think and an increased degree of autonomy to customise that contribution based on professional mastery and a shared sense (one would hope) in the value of good education. The critical given for college staff is a belief in the power of education.
He goes on to link 'staff freedom' or autonomy to being an essential part of the recipe for outstanding. He argues that one follows the other and it seems intuitive that to be outstanding means a departure from simply eradicating error or having a herd approach to improvement.
He is able to argue this point (and this is where my particular interest emerges) because of the technologies that now exist to make this highly granular approach possible through the use of the reflective portfolio.
Seeing how LSIS are using portfolio approaches to match up with the IfL approach to reflective thinking and writing, there is consensus emerging on this new approach. LSIS, IfL and the LSN by inference all now support the reflective and portfolio-based approach to learning.
As with all articles in this blog, it is intended to provide food for thought to reflect against for CPD.
A happy new year to all. Congratulations to Sue George and Jo Bartlett on their recent award of QTLS.
John Stone is chief executive of LSN, the not-for-profit organisation focused on making learning work for further and higher education, local authorities and schools, public services, work-based learning and international organisations
Source: FE News 23rd. December 2010, accessed at http://www.fenews.co.uk/featured-article/a-new-map-for-reaching-outstanding
Pink D.H. (2011) Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates is to work: Canongate Books London accessed 20.12.10 at http://www.amazon.co.uk/Drive-Surprising-Truth-About-Motivates/dp/184767769X/ref=dp_ob_title_bk
What makes a brilliant teacher?
31 October 2010
This from the IfL and NUS. It continues in the same vein as previous thoughts from the IfL about what is good teaching. Importantly it is in partnership with the NUS and mirrors our own work at Thanet in involving students in this conversation. The IfL is encouraging us to go further in thinking about brilliant teaching.
Rather than add the report as an attachment I have copied directly below.
IfL and NUS launch joint teaching and learning campaign
The Institute for Learning (IfL) and the National Union of Students (NUS) have launched a joint campaign to highlight the value of brilliant teaching and learning in further education and skills. The campaign was launched at the NUS Further Education Zone Conference in Liverpool on 28 and 29 October 2010, where learners were invited to debate what makes a brilliant teacher. The discussion is being extended to teachers and learners alike through a dedicated Facebook page.
IfL's deputy chief executive, Lee Davies, said, "IfL represents over 170,000 teachers and trainers in further education and skills, and learners' views form a key part of our members' professional development and their ability to enhance the learner experience. I'm looking forward to hearing the ideas from this year's student representatives on what makes a brilliant teacher, as part of our campaign with NUS on teaching and learning.
"Listening to the learner voice is all very well; what is important is that we hear and understand and take action to ensure that we are bridging the gap between learners' expectations and the teaching and training they receive. Today's learners are understandably more demanding, really well equipped to engage in technology, and able to articulate what they want from teaching and learning. The average age of teachers and trainers coming into the FE and skills sector is 38, and we need to make sure that they are able to harness the technologies that young people use, for example."
Shane Chowen, vice-president for further education at NUS said, "Learners expect the highest standards and want their teachers and trainers to be up to date in their specialist field and in their teaching and training methods. We are delighted to have this opportunity to debate the subject directly with teachers and trainers at our conference and through social media, and look forward to continuing our work with IfL to discuss and promote the highest standards of teaching and learning in our sector. We would also like to thank IfL for sponsoring our conference again this year."
Callum Morton, an NUS conference delegate from Amersham and Wycombe College, shared his experience of productive collaboration between teachers and learners. He explained, "We have introduced a new structure at the college where class representatives and teachers meet three times a year to discuss improvements to course delivery.
"This approach is more effective than an annual review, which is complete only when the year is over. It enables students to have a say in their learning while also helping our teachers with new ideas and feedback on the course. I have not yet met a teacher who doesn't want to help and improve the courses they teach."
22 September 2010
In a Paper I worked on at BECTA we were considering how one might describe a set of common goals or measures for effective WFD for e-learning that starts from the following position:
1.It is desirable that individual staff members develop their potential to be more effective as part of the larger developing workforce
2.A developing workforce is one that recognises the constant challenge of the new and with the imagination to apply the properties of technology to purposeful and effective teaching and learning.
3.A developed workforce is one that tackles this with confidence.
4.A confident workforce is one that is not afraid of the challenges new technologies may bring to teaching and learning.
We proposed a concept of WFD for e-learning that has 2 elements:
1.Reflection and reflective practice should be embedded into WFD for e-learning in an environment of empowered teaching staff taking responsibility and accounting for their own professional development
2.That any development activity, regardless of organisation and outcomes, should promote or demonstrate one or more of 7 over-arching behaviours i.e. 'meta-skills' that form the 'characteristics of e-confidence'.
This is predicated on the belief that
1. Every teacher has a unique learning path and story to tell
2. That a developed workforce is one capable of facing the challenging demands placed on it by the organisation with confidence.
To look at the meta skills, (or higher levbel thinking skills) proposed, click on this link
Geoff's Blog
Over the last few years, I have kept notes of the big issues as I see them relating to pedagogy & technology
August 2017


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Resident Life.
Your new friends will soon seem like you've known them for a lifetime. Spend your days with friends, pursuing old interests and discovering new ones…laughing, learning, exploring, sharing…
"We've been here two years, and it's just been a wonderful place to be."
The Bettins
Satisfaction Seekers + Staunch Hobbyists + Amused by Snowdrifts
"I love the independence that I have here."
Carol Dapogny
Theater Aficionado + Gentle Activist + Loyal to French Provincial
"We made friends that we cannot imagine our lives without."
Happy Ex-Homeowners + Energizer Grandparents + Good Neighbors Personified
"We've enjoyed every moment. Everything is so easy!"
Bob Swanson and The Parks
Carefree Road Warriors + Activity Devotees + Big on Community
"What you can do here is only limited by your imagination."
The Sellbergs and the Savilles
Fine Diners + Swimsuit Volleyballers + Kings of the Woodshop
"I love hearing about their children and grandchildren and great grandchildren."
The Employees
Hooked on Interaction + Resident Driven + Creators of Convenience
Who doesn't love a great romance story?
WCIU TV has visited Monarch Landing to explore the amazing and inspirational love stories of some of our resident couples. The segments have aired on WCIU's morning show, You and Me This Morning. Grab some Kleenex and enjoy!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Tip of the Week
Tip of the Week: Rolling 12-Month Data View
Analyzing market data through graphs and looking for trends can be tricky because the data points sometimes change drastically from month to month. For example, if a brand new condo building was built in October 2018, home sales may have seen a large spike that month, when October is usually a slow sales month. Thankfully, when creating charts in InfoSparks (a NorthstarMLS core service & market analysis tool), there is an option to use a "rolling" data view to smooth short-term fluctuations and highlight longer-term trends you are looking for.
By using the Rolling 12 Months, you can educate buyers and sellers on basic fundamentals of statistics and provide meaningful information that can be used to make buying and selling decisions. Each data point on the line graph represents 12 months of activity up to that point in time. The sample set will be larger for more meaningful trend analysis. Note how much smoother the line is when using the Rolling 12 Months calculation.


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Most sectors and industries are covered but we do not limit ourselves to any opportunity we have been afforded with. Each placement is backed by a guarantee, ensuring that we add value and build a lifelong relationship with your organisation.


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At Corporate Identity Design, we love what we do. And what we do is design corporate identity for businesses who want to raise their profile, and who want to connect emotionally with their consumers.
Corporate Design Manual – Work Is Not Simply Work
To us, work is not work. Instead, it is something that we have a passion for. To help you understand a little bit more about what we do, we thought we would give you a brief insight into our corporate design manual and show you how we work out magic.
Corporate Design Manual – Our Work Process
- You Place An Order – At Corporate Identity Design, we are home to a team of writers, designers and illustrators who are able to work on all aspects of your branding. Whether you want logos, slogans, envelopes, letterheads or brochures, we can do that for you.
- Corporate Identity Design Templates – Our creatives then set to work on a number of corporate identity design templates for your viewing pleasure. We want to involve you in the process as much as possible, and so we invite you to take a look at some of our templates. You can then see what works for you.
- We Get To Work – Our experts then set to work on creating your corporate identity system. We guarantee a fast turnaround, and our friendly team are always open to any queries you might have.
Corporate Design Manual – Get In Touch With Us Today
At Corporate Identity Design, we believe in openness and communication. If you want to find out more about what our creatives can do for you, why not get in touch with us today? We're always happy to talk.


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Asking Price: $349,000
Real Estate: Must Relocate Business
Gross Revenues: $568,000
Cash Flow: $138,000
This company, a subsidiary of a larger operation, currently only produces a single type of metal fastener for use in a very stable industry. The company utilizes outside vendors resulting in streamlined operations. There is just one employee (not full time) and the owner (with divided attention) operating the business today. The business is currently located in Northern Indiana. However, a new owner should plan of relocating the business to a location of their choice in the Midwest.
General Information
Facilities: The business will rquire approximately 2,000 - 3,000 square feet of space.
Growth & Expansion: The business could easily expand its product line to its current customers.
Support & Training: The seller will provide necessary support and training.
Reason Selling: Other business focus.
Contact: Troy Frank
Phone: 317-333-6655 x 101


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F3 Motor Auctions is Newcastle's newest auctionWe have vehicles to suit all needs, from lower price range to prestige. Auction every Friday at 9:00am
We have brand new facilities and a brand new way of thinking.
Supplying a wide range of vehicles to the motor industry.
Our staff have a wealth of knowledge and experience in the motor industry,and can help you choose the right vehicle for your needs.


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Charles L. Peterson Official Blog
This blog is dedicated to the discussion of Charles L. Peterson's artwork. We will do our best to update the blog with unique content and photographs you might not see elsewhere. Content on this blog will include updates on special events, new or exclusive paintings, commissions, and more.
Although Mr. Peterson will not be directly posting on this blog, the webmaster will be updating posts with content provided by Mr. Peterson or his publisher. Any questions or comments regarding the artist or his career(s) are welcome. We encourage an open dialogue, so please do not hesitate to make suggestions or provide general feedback. The blog is maintained by C.L. Peterson Studio (www.clpetersonstudio.com), therefore Charles L. Peterson, and his publisher (White Door Publishing Co.) are not responsible for any content on this blog.
If you would like to contact us via email, we can be reached at: email@example.com
To submit a question or comment outside of this blog, please use the contact form on our main website: http://www.clpetersonstudio.com/contact.html
Best Regards,
C. L. P e t e r s o n S t u d i o


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Contemplating the ways that homeschooling has changed for me over the years, and why I might not be feeling the same enthusiasm for educating my little boys that I did when my oldest boys were small, I realize that lately, I've eliminated most of the fun. When our schedule gets really full, I pare things down to just the "necessary" for the sake of time. Homeschooling becomes less and less inspired, and more a series of boxes that I try to check off in an effort to get what is deemed the most important finished. I think this is one of the ways that I get burned out. Homeschooling feels like a chore that needs to be dealt with and we are all affected. It's not fun for me or them. And winter weather just exaggerates everything. There's no moving the school day to a quilt in the grass, or spending hours in the woods.
For the past few weeks, I've been trying to bring some fun back into our days and to find ways to make learning a more creative endeavor. To encourage writing, I remember purchasing little lined blank books for Seth and Keats. The books had lined space to write and open space to draw. The boys loved them, but they were so quickly consumed that continuing to purchase them didn't make sense financially. Recently, it occurred to me that it would be pretty simple to make my own using a template for the lined paper and sewing simple cardstock covered books. You can find basic instructions in this post from many years ago (and here's another way to bind the books if you don't have a sewing machine), and you can download my simple template for the blank book. It is designed for double-sided printing so that the pages are lined on both sides. If you don't have access to a printer that prints two-sided pages, just print page one and create books with less lined pages, and more space for drawing. The spacing is similar to what I remember the blank books I purchased having (with younger children in mind), but you could easily create a page with smaller spacing for older children, as Beatrix requested that I do next. I sewed a stack of them and my little boys have been writing all sorts of stories.
The candlemaking project was one I meant to do before Candlemas, but didn't. Rolled beeswax candles are simple for even the youngest children to make. I buy kits from Sunflower Candles (I've also purchased their Advent candle making kits several times over the years.) All of my younger children loved making these and they are lined up on the mantle now, waiting to be lit at special times.
We had a very short-lived snow last week. We woke to snow covering the ground one morning, with more falling. The forecast for the following day had a high in the 60s. It was easy to drop all school work and spend most of the day playing outside, especially since the snow canceled all the day's activities! I am gaining a new appreciation for snow.
I'm still trying to find rhythm and inspiration for our homeschooling days, while also accepting that this might not be the year! It may be that I don't find a good rhythm with my younger children until our schedule simplifies late this spring. In fact, I just came up with what might be a good idea. While my older kids have a break, maybe Silas and Job will have summer school, and I'll be more available to create a consistent and fun daily routine. In the meantime, we'll keep reading good books, and I'll sew another stack of blank books for them to write in (and keep encouraging Silas to do pages in his math workbook). Next year, the older kids can drive themselves, and maybe the summer routine will carry into the fall. But, I better not get ahead of myself. One day at a time….
p.s. The quilt was my fortieth birthday gift to myself. It was made by my friend Sara, someone I have long followed online. She makes quits by hand using fabric she dyes with natural dyes. This quilt was the first she offered for sale, and it reminds me of New Mexico, a place where a bit of my heart resides. The rust brown reminds me of the mountains and the turquoise of the jewelry that I've always loved. The quilt sat folded on a shelf in my closet for over a year, as I waited for the walls to get painted and for Jonny to make a quilt hanger for me. He used a cherry log that was salvaged from our previous property and created the perfect hanger just last week. Our living room has a vaulted ceiling, which is quite the opposite of the very low ceilings in our previous home's living room. I've had a hard time feeling cozy here. The quilt on the wall was just what it needed. Between it and a few photos I recently hung, it's finally starting to feel like home.


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Black Isle Cares is a charity registered in 2015 to facilitate improvement of care services on the Black Isle, especially for our older population.
We work with the NHS and our Care partners Highland Home Carers. We are governed by a group of volunteer trustees.
Purposes of Black Isle Cares are:
- To support adults with health and social needs and their carers, to identify gaps in provision and seek ways to fill these.
- We connect with existing initiatives and liaise with voluntary organisations to co-ordinate activities, including the Highland Senior Citizens' Network, of which we are a member.
More widely in the Black Isle, provide public benefit by:
- Promoting social inclusion, equality, diversity and active participation.
- Provide training and employment and making local services more accessible.
Methods of Delivery:
Through identifying weaknesses in current provision of care in the home, intermediate care, care homes and by working with other agencies to effect sustainable provision.
Our services:
Meals on Wheels
Read BIC's Annual Report


text: Robby and His Neon Trunks Were the Best Part of 'The Bachelorette' Episode 5 7:47 AM PDT 6/21/2016 by Sam Reed FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL ME Courtesy of ABC Here's where you can get your own pair. In a sea of black and navy v-necks, three-quarter sleeved baseball tees and too-tight zip-up hoodies, Robby's neon swim trunks were a breath of fresh, South American air on episode five of The Bachelorette. While cliff jumping off the coast of Uruguay on his one-on-one date with Jojo, Robby shimmied out of his khakis and revealed his pineapple-printed swim trunks in all their neon glory. Sure, some other men have taken style risks (Vinny's fedora and Derek's stars and stripes crewneck tee were valiant efforts, yet ultimately, failures), but Robby seems to have locked down his title as "the stylish one." The trunks, called "The Hooligans," are from frat-favorite e-tailer Chubbies and will cost you $60 — worth every penny, if you ask us. FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL ME Sam Reed email@example.com @thr


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New Green 'EcoGroomer' Machine
Are you a resort skier concerned about the immense amounts of fuel and energy used for snowmaking, grooming, heating lodges, and running lifts to make your sport happen? A new company, EcoGroomer of Denver, Colo., addresses the snow-grooming side of the equation with a to-be-released machine that can result in a "200% increase in the surface area covered by one cat with a single operator."
Though it looks like an electric-powered tractor, the EcoGroomer will still run on diesel fuel. But the company touts "tremendous productivity improvement" in the field of snow grooming by attaching two additional snow processing units to a traditional Snowcat tractor.
EcoGroomer cites fuel efficiency for nightly snow grooming to be improved by more than 30 percent, and that its product could save "over 20 million gallons of diesel fuel at US ski resorts" if widely deployed.
For the rest of the story, visit TheGearJunkie.com.


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Jan Lemuri is an international facilitator, presenter and author of Inner Dolphin Awakening. His curiosity was sparked 14 years ago, when dolphins started visiting him in his dreams. His journey took him to meet and often swim with cetaceans in Hawaii, Croatia, Azores (Portugal), New Zealand, Tonga and Australia. In 2012 he finished his studies of Social Work with a thesis on Dolphin Assisted Therapy. He is passionate about awakening our inner dolphin – a part of us that is joyful, curious and quantum – and has channeled numerous tools, meditations and insights to assist us on this journey. He currently resides in Taos, NM with his wife and a 3-year old daughter.
"There are certain things to be recognized, certain things to be learned and certain things to be celebrated. But never is the journey you take, taken in vain."


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Voice Group Reveals Why Marketing Research is an Important Part of Business
16 Jul, 2012, 15:09 BST
SHEFFIELD, England, July 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
Marketing research is essential to driving new business growth says Voice Group
Award winning contact centre services and marketing solutions firm Voice Group says marketing research is an essential driving force in the development of new business.
Without marketing research, mistakes would be made, leads would be lost and businesses would suffer as a result. Market research is used to learn more about a target audience, a product's or service's market viability or a company's image or reputation.
Research can be conducted using interviews, surveys and questionnaires using both qualitative and quantitative research methods. All the information is then collated and statistical analysis is conducted to enable market researchers to form solid and sound conclusions. These results can then be passed onto lead and appointment generation teams that can use them to make qualified appointments and leads.
All of this can be done in house at Voice Group. Voice Group conducts marketing research using its own team of Interviewer Quality Control Scheme accredited researchers; it runs its own in house lead generation and appointment setting services as well as customer focused call centres and telesales offices.
Voice Group says that lead and appointment generation are vital to creating new business. If a company wants to expand, or even just keep up with the times and stay competitive in a cutthroat business environment, it needs to garner new customers as well as retain existing ones. The best way of achieving this is through lead and appointment generation.
Yet, without the necessary marketing research to back it all up and provide staff with the tools required to make qualified leads that convert into sales, businesses would not be able to grow. So although marketing research is often overlooked, it is unfair to do so. It is an essential element of growth and a necessary building block of developing new business. It is for these reasons Voice Group places so much importance on marketing research and why it uses only the most qualified, experienced and highly trained researchers to do the job.
Jon Wall,
Chantrey House,
798 Chesterfield Road,
Telephone: +44-(0)114-321-0000
SOURCE Voice Group


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Cayment Fish Rug by Alyson Chase
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Available thread options - please call (978) 226-8271 Free Shipping on every order to the US.
Looking for a different canvas or mesh size?
Just ask! We're happy to customize.
By Email: Contact form
By Phone: (978) 226-8271
Happy colorful Cayment Fish Rug. Great color combination with just the right diversity of color and not too much background makes this a wonderful overall canvas for an area rug or wall hanging. Measures 24" x 31" on 14 mesh needlepoint canvas. We are happy to select and add appropriate colors of merino wool or silk threads. Available in alternate sizes. Please contact us if you would like us to add the fibers of your choice.


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SkyFuel Aviation
Our name is indicative of what we want to be known for, aviation fueling services. We want to strive to be the leading industry experts in all aspects of commercial aviation fueling. Into-plane services; Management, Operations and Maintenance of fuel facilities; and also Military Fuel Facility Inspection and Repairs are all services our Team has a vast array of experience and are well respected for safe operations and customer service we bring to the industry.


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The University of Huddersfield is an internationally recognised research-led institution. The expert staff are at the forefront of research and development, solving problems and answering questions posed by industry, science and society as a whole.
Research within the School of Computing and Engineering gives students who have completed their studies an opportunity to develop their knowledge and skills even further.


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Less Weight, More Quiet
Customers want quieter vehicles. They also want cars and trucks that have better fuel economy. Until now, the two goals were mutually exclusive because making a vehicle quieter meant adding more layers of heavy insulating materials. The weight of these materials might run from 55 lb. on a smaller vehicle, to as high as 135 lb. on a luxury sedan at a time when engineers are chasing ounces elsewhere in the car. If that isn't enough, larger pieces–like dash panel sound insulators–are often so heavy (15 to 20 lb. isn't unusual) and flexible that it takes two people and multiple fasteners to install them on an assembly line.
"Our Ultra Light technology," says David Westgate, president and CEO of Rieter Automotive Systems' Americas business unit (Farmington Hills, MI), "can take an average of 30 lb. out of a vehicle, and lower the weight of a typical dash panel by as much as 70%." (Rieter claims weight savings of between 15 lb. and 90 lb. on the 20 production vehicles currently using the system.) He proves the point by putting the current dash panel from a new Japanese mid-size car, and its Ultra Light replacement on a scale. The formed Ultra Light pad weighs 12 lb. less than the 17 lb. standard insulator, and needs five fewer fasteners. "The current unit takes two people to lift into place and secure," says Jeff VanBuskirk, v.p., Systems Engineering and Development, "while ours can be fitted by one person in less time, which frees that worker to perform other tasks."
Featured Content
Reducing the weight of the typical sound barrier material increases the amount of noise that is transmitted to the vehicle interior. "Conventional materials are designed to smother unwanted sounds," says VanBuskirk, "and they need the mass to do that." Ultra Light, a patented multi-layer material, absorbs sound and makes cable runs and other noise infiltration paths–including windows–less critical. "You don't want to build a sound-proof box," says VanBuskirk, "because any sound that does leak through turns the interior into a reverberation chamber. The idea isn't to keep sound from entering the cabin, but to absorb it as quickly as possible so that it doesn't become an annoyance." Anything that can cut weight and noise infiltration in this manner must be pretty special.
"There's nothing special about the materials we use," says Westgate. "These are combinations of high- and low-density fiber and foam products, though the Ultra Light carpet does use a patented weaving process." The carpet sits on a micro-porous absorbing layer over a lightweight acoustic foam/felt, and has as typical specific weight of 1.8 kg.m2, or 2.2 kg/m2 less than an insulating floor module. It is molded to the contours of the vehicle floorpan, and installs as a single unit. According to VanBuskirk, "The OEMs tell us the Ultra Light floor module sits and looks better without any degradation in acoustic performance." This has helped the company get more business earlier in the design process.
Rieter has acoustic integration responsibility on a 2003 GM platform. In this role, the company determined the best location for its materials, oversaw the suppliers, and controlled the interfaces for maximum acoustic performance. "We weren't limited to just covering existing insulation areas with our materials," says VanBuskirk, "which gave us the opportunity to negotiate the real estate we needed, cascade this down through GM and the suppliers, and defend our turf." The result, he claims, was well worth the effort: "According to GM, this is the first time a prototype at the beta build ever met the acoustic targets. There are no noise issues heading into production." This is quite a feat considering that noise issues are often at the root of vehicle launch delays. Westgate and VanBuskirk say this is just one example of what is possible through early involvement in a project.
"We removed 22 lb. of PVC undercoating on the Mercedes A-Class, and replaced it with a lightweight multiple-piece underbody shield," says Westgate. In addition, multi-piece heat shields were consolidated into single-piece acoustic units, under-vehicle air dams were eliminated, and hinged sections designed into the shield to ease servicing. "We had to pay careful attention to the panel shapes, fastener placement, and the transitions between panels so that we didn't introduce any wind noise or negatively affect the aerodynamics," says VanBuskirk. Though specific acoustic values weren't given for the A-Class, Rieter claims the underbody shield typically produces an aerodynamic improvement of about 10%, as much as a 12dB reduction in noise levels, and a 10% improvement in speech intelligibility. The Cd on the A-Class dropped from 0.32 to 0.27 with the addition of the underbody shielding.
Because Rieter's noise reduction is achieved without resorting to high-tech materials, the company often finds it must prove its claims to skeptical OEMs. "We are often asked to do an A-to-B comparison on a vehicle that is an automaker's worst application," says Westgate. "This includes showing them how much weight we saved, and having them drive the car back-to-back with an unmodified version they provide. No one has been disappointed yet." Or, for that matter, unimpressed with how less material can result in greater quiet.
Related Topics
Creating a Low-Cost Chassis Architecture
The engineers at Zenos Cars have combined recycled carbon fiber, drinking straws and aluminum to create a chassis for a low-volume sports car.
Chip Foose: Humble Genius
Scene 1After speaking at Detroit's Cobo Hall during the North American International Auto Show, Chip Foose seems genuinely taken with the evident adulation of the audience, and takes the time to answer every question and sign autographs.The second oldest child and only male in a family with four kids, Chip Foose was born in Santa Barbara, California, on October 6, 1963.
Multiple Choices for Light, High-Performance Chassis
How carbon fiber is utilized is as different as the vehicles on which it is used. From full carbon tubs to partial panels to welded steel tube sandwich structures, the only limitation is imagination.


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When writing or accepting an offer, one thing that can often go unnoticed is the deposit, more specifically, when the deposit is due.
In the offer the deposit is required either 'herewith" or 'upon acceptance'. Herewith means attached to the offer. Upon acceptance means what it says, when you have a deal. That is what most agents put in their offers. However, below the deposit payment it explains that the deposit must be paid within 24hrs. If you don't' the agent is subject to discipline, but that's it. The offer is not dead, because the deposit is not a condition.
In our brokerage, we have a separate clause that says 'if the deposit is not received within 48 hours, the seller, at their option, may cancel the deal' using that clause, the deal is definitely dead. So why are we focusing on deposit deadlines? More and more deposits are coming in by wire transfer. This takes longer than 24 hours, and closer to 48 hours. Good agents know this and write into their offer that the deposit is not paid upon acceptance but within 3 business days.


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We're looking for an experienced, ambitious and talented Senior Creative to join our award-winning team – someone who has an exceptional talent and passion for creating original, strategy-led and audience-focused content that delivers above and beyond client brief.
The function of the Senior Creative role at RAW is to oversee all creative work within the agency, from brief through to delivery, to ensure that we're delivering world-class content: on-brief, on-message and of the highest creative standard.
You'll form a vital pillar in the business, connecting and developing the relationship between our new business and account teams, our clients and the work and output of our creative production team. As such, you'll be closely involved in the pitching process and regular client meetings regarding content strategy, performance and ongoing account development.
With project budgets ranging from £10 – 200k and clients across leading global charities and brands, this is an exciting and rare opportunity to be defining the quality standards of independent agency production.
Just fill in the form below


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Finding useful health information on the Internet can be difficult, but we're here to help. This page gathers quality information from trusted sources. You can learn more about the disease, visit handpicked websites, and find resources to help you in your daily life. Need more information? Click the menu on the left to find more!
Medical Disclaimer
The medical information on this site is provided as an information resource only, and is not to be used or relied on for any diagnostic or treatment purposes. This information is not intended to be patient education, does not create any patient-physician relationship, and should not be used as a substitute for professional diagnosis and treatment.
Sandhoff disease
Sandhoff disease is an inherited lipid storage disorder that progressively destroys nerve cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord. The most common and severe form of Sandhoff disease becomes apparent in infancy. Infants with this disorder typically appear normal until the age of 3 to 6 months when their development slows and muscles used for movement weaken. Other forms of Sandhoff disease have been described where much milder signs and symptoms begin in childhood, adolescence, or adulthood. These forms are very rare. Sandhoff disease is caused by mutations in the HEXB gene. These mutations cause a deficiency of the enzyme beta-hexosaminidase, which results in the accumulation of certain fats (lipids) in the brain and other organs of the body. Sandhoff disease is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. Source: Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center (GARD), supported by ORDR-NCATS and NHGRI.
Trusted Medical Sites
Genetic & Rare Diseases Information Center (GARD) GARD provides the public with access to current, reliable, and easy-to-understand information about rare or genetic diseases in English or Spanish.
Support Organizations
Support organizations can provide help and guidance in areas such as peer matching, education and training, and therapy and counseling.


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Movies in Theaters
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Movie Release Dates
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Science Fiction Movies
Extraterrestrial Movie Review: It's No Timecrimes
If aliens invade but never appear, does it count as an alien invasion movie? Oh, wait.
Prometheus Movie Review
After 30 years, Ridley Scott (
Blade Runner
) has returned to the sci-fi genre.
Win Stephenie Meyer's The Host!
We're giving away five free copies of the book, in anticipation of next year's movie.
Men in Black 3 Movie Review
No one was asking for another
Men in Black
, but Agents J and K are back again, with a twist.
Win Big with Battleship!
, the new Peter Berg action extravaganza starring Taylor Hirsch, Brooklyn Decker and Rihanna, explodes onto theaters today.
Chronicle Flies onto DVD & Blu-ray
The entertaining sci-fi action film
, about three teenagers who develop superpowers - for better or for worse - is now on DVD and Blu-ray.
Seattle Chronicles: Six Classic Seattle Movies
, on DVD and Blu-ray this week, downtown Seattle gets destroyed by some angry superpowered teenagers. Here are six other Seattle movies worth seeing.
The Avengers Shatters Box Office Records
Thor's hammer, Iron Man's steel, the Hulk's smash, Captain America's patriotism and Black Widow's cleavage combined for quite a wallop over the weekend.
The 23 Movies to Watch this Summer
The Avengers
officially kicks off the summer movie season this Friday. Here are 21 other movies to watch this summer.
Watch the New Dark Knight Rises Trailer
Warner Bros. Pictures has released the new movie trailer for its upcoming action epic
The Dark Knight Rises
, and it is... epic.
The Top 5 Worst Movie Trailers of 2012 (So Far)
It may be early in the year to be making a list like this, but trailers for some of the summer blockbusters have been lame to say the least.
Six New Avengers Movie Clips & Featurettes
You probably haven't heard, but there's this small indie film called
The Avengers
debuting in a few theaters on May 4. Here are some clips from the movie.
Batman and Bane in Lover's Quarrel in New Movie Images
See some new images from the highly anticipated
The Dark Knight Rises
, including the clearest picture yet of the new Batman suit.
'Lockout' is Funny, but It Isn't a Comedy
, in theaters today, is "based upon an original idea by Luc Besson." We see it as
Escape from New York
in space.
The Darkest Hour Movie Review
If you want to see how NOT to make an alien invasion movie, watch
The Darkest Hour
, out today on DVD and Blu-ray.
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Review: 'Borat Subsequent Moviefilm'
Review: 'On the Rocks'
'Synchronic' Opens on Friday. Check it Out.
Review: 'The Trial of the Chicago 7'


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As a business owner you may think purchasing a company vehicle is unnecessary. It may seem like a waste of money, but these vehicles are very helpful in getting the most out of the services you offer customers. Company vehicles allow staff to be faster and more efficient in getting the job done. These vehicles are also a good way to advertise to the public what services you offer. Company vehicles will have the business name, the phone number, and a list of services to choose from. Company vehicles are beneficial because your staff can carry more equipment, you can hire more workers, and you can services more customers.
Carrying More Equipment
Company vehicles are important to getting business done depending on the type of vehicle you have. If your employees need to deal with a lot of equipment it can be tough getting around without the right vehicle to help transport the things they need to get the job done. Without the proper vehicle, employees have to make several trips, or other staff members have to break away from what they are doing to help and in the end, it is all counterproductive.
Hiring More Workers
Company vehicles allow you to hire more workers to get stuff done. Workers can work in teams, and have help carrying the equipment out of the vehicle at the job site. They can also work together at the job site to get the work completed much faster. This is a great idea for project that require several steps. One employee will experience less burnout with the help of a team. It also allows the possibility of employees mastering their role in getting the service completed.
Servicing More Customers
You might consider getting as many vehicles as you need to get the work done for your customers. just starting out you might find yourself handling a single customer at a time. With more employees and more vehicles, you can be in many places at a time. That is a far more profitable model, as long as all the employees are skilled professionals. Hire employees you can insure and employees you can trust so they can free take the vehicle to complete assigned projects and start the process of building a great reputation for your business. If you think you are interested in getting something for your staff to ride in you should search for a fleet vehicle.
Some companies rely on employees to use their personal vehicles to get things done. Some businesses may even be looking to hire employees that are already owners of the type of vehicle they will need to carry the equipment. This requires the company to look for workers with good insurance. The business must also manage several insurance certificates and always make sure their workers' insurance remains current. Purchasing company vehicles is a way around that stress. Buying a company vehicle works because staff can carry more equipment, you can hire more staff, and you can service more customers.


text: Back to selection Extra Curricular by Holly Willis UT3D The UT3D program in action Subscribers by Holly Willis in Cinematography, Columns, Filmmaking, Issues on Jan 17, 2014 3D, Don Howard, UT3D, Winter 2014 This is premium content. To read the rest, please log in. If you are not currently a member, please purchase a digital or print subscription to Filmmaker or join IFP.


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This winter, you may find yourself with uninvited guests-orange-red Asian ladybugs. Imported to combat garden pests, Asian ladybugs like to spend the cold season indoors, where they favor light-color walls that receive plenty of sunshine.
Listen to ON KEEPING LADYBUGS OUT or read the text below:
Since they leave pheromone trails, Asian ladybugs typically return to the same site to hibernate year after year. They pose no danger to you or your property, but when upon invading your home, their sheer numbers can be overwhelming. To end the problem, simply vacuum and then release the bugs outdoors. Careful-don't sweep up the ladybugs, because when stressed, they secrete a smelly yellow liquid capable of staining walls and floors.
To keep the bugs from finding their way back into the home, use weatherstripping and foam insulation to seal any cracks around doors, windows, and eaves. Also, note that it can be effective to spray insecticide, not in the garden, but against the home exterior, including the siding, trim, attic vents, and roof overhang.
Radio is a 60-second home improvement radio tip of the day carried on more than 186 stations in 75 markets around the country. Click here to subscribe, so you can automatically receive each new episode as it arrives-absolutely free!


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Dried and fresh ginger heighten the flavor of these cupcakes. They rise best when baked in foil liners. Start with three teaspoons lemon juice when making the glaze, and add the extra teaspoon if you want a thinner consistency.
How to Make It
Preheat oven to 350°.
To prepare cupcakes, line 12 muffin cups with foil liners.
Weigh or lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 6 ingredients (through allspice), stirring mixture with a whisk.
Combine buttermilk and molasses, stirring with a whisk.
Place brown sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 1 minute). Add fresh ginger and egg; beat well. Beating at low speed, add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with molasses mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat just until blended. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.
Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack. Remove from pan.
To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar and juice, stirring until smooth. Drizzle over warm cupcakes.


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"What do I care if they didn't choose me," Herb said. "Bunch of nonsense anyway. Whoever heard of a focus group anyway?"
"I did," Bert said. "It's an amalgamation of common, run-of-the-mill consumers who are bribed to think for an hour. Wish they'd have asked me."
"Free lunch in the back room."
"They didn't pick me, either, fellas," Dud said, "but they picked my wife. Anita was really looking forward to it. I don't even know what it's about."
"Worms," said Bert.
"You're kidding!"
"May my pants fall down in church if I'm lyin'. It's worms. They're talking about worms."
Herb got up and picked up his check. "I'm leaving. Can't stay in here a minute longer, knowing they're in that room having lunch."
Dud and Bert got up, too. The three paid and went out the front door into the spring sunshine.
"Reminds me," said Bert, "of the time the preacher went into the bar and ordered a glass of whiskey and a glass of water…"
"Which preacher?"
"Hush … so everybody in this bar was watching, see, 'cuz the preacher was known to hate booze. He looked at the patrons and said, 'I want to show you guys what happens with alcohol!' And he pulls an earthworm out of his pocket.
"'Look what happens when I immerse this little fella in God's pure water,' said the preacher. And he dips him in the water and the worm comes out all wiggly and clean. 'And now,' said the preacher, 'see what happens to him when I put him in the Devil's brew!'
"And he stuck that worm in the whisky and he stiffened and died instantly. 'I hope you fellas learned a lesson from this!' the preacher said, waving the worm about. And in the back, this old drunk yelled, 'You bet, Reverend. Man drinks enough whiskey, he'll never get worms!'"
Brought to you by the new CD "Having Fun in New Mexico," Fifteen stories by Slim Randles. slimrandles.com.


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Every year Time Magazine creates The Top Ten Of Everything list, Hip Hop made a particularly good showing this year with three albums making the top albums list and rappers being featured in several other categories.
Top 10 Albums:
1. Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
2. Arcade Fire, The Suburbs
3. LCD Soundsystem, This Is Happening
4. The National, High Violet
5. Drake, Thank Me Later
6. Sufjan Stevens, Age of Adz
7. The Black Keys, Brothers
8. Yeasayer, Odd Blood
9. Big Boi, Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty
10. Beach House, Teen Dream
In addition, Kanye West was listed in several other categories. Including several Twitter categories, having one of the years top comebacks, the most over reported story, and the years biggest songs (see below). Eminem's Rolling Stone cover was among top magazine covers.
Top 10 Songs:
Cee Lo Green, "F___ You"
Janelle Monáe, "Tightrope"
Kanye West, "Power"
Arcade Fire, "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)"
Eminem featuring Rihanna, "Love the Way You Lie"
Yeasayer, "Ambling Alp"
Jónsi, "Animal Arithmetic"
Drake, "Find Your Love"
Elizabeth Cook, "All the Time"
Sleigh Bells, "Rill Rill"
Check out the full list here.


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College Term Paper/Online college term papers
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text: Attorney Review of Your Trust HAVE YOUR TRUST REVIEWED BY THE BESTand get a SECOND OPINIONAre your documents up to date? As a service to our clients for $150, we have partnered with the best inthe business to determine if your documents meet our standards for a revocable living trust. Thesestandards include the following:Control to the estate owners for life.In the event of the owners' incapacity, opportunity for estate tax savings vialifetime gifts to and use of funds for heirs, if appropriate.Designation of community property, when applicable.Elimination of estate taxes to the maximum extent permitted by law.Deferral of estate taxes to the maximum extent permitted by law.Protection of trust assets for the beneficiaries, including the estate owners,when applicable.Contingency planning (in the event all heirs are deceased).Consistency in trust clauses, particularly in the degree of control provided tothe surviving spouse of the original estate owner.Karen Sinchak HigbyKaren Sinchak Higby is the attorney who authors our prototype Estate Planning documents; we have worked with Karen and her team for over 10 years. Karen is an estate planning attorney who has focused exclusively on Trusts, Estate Planning, Wills, Probate and related matters since 1976. A former resident of Ohio, Karen was a partner in two of Arizona's largest law firms before opening her own law firm in January 1991.Having graduated Cum Laude from Ohio University in 1966 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Spanish, Karen received her Juris Doctor degree from Akron University in 1975 a the top of her class. Karen is admitted to practice in Ohio and in Arizona. While attending Akron University, she received the West Publishing Company awards for excellence in Contract Law and Constitutional Law. Experienced Estate Planning Attorney Karen obtained the designation Certified Financial Planner from the College of Financial Planning, Denver, Colorado, in 1983 and is past President of the International Association of Financial Planning, Greater Phoenix Chapter. She was formerly Vice President of the First Chicago Trust and was a faculty member of the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin for over 15 years.A sought-after lecturer in her field due to her unique ability to communicate complex legal issues in a simple, easy-to-understand format, Karen is admired among attorneys, accountants, financial planners and other professionals because of her client-focused law practice. Karen's team focuses on assisting individuals and their families in saving taxes, eliminating probate, and making their family affairs convenient to handle.


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Vicenza Hotels - Italy Trips Holidays and Vacations Travel - Italy, Europe Hotels and Resorts
Trips Holidays : Australia, Asia Travel, Africa Travel, Europe Travel, Middle East Travel, USA
Hotels | Accommodations | Beach Resorts | Cruises | Flights | Travel Agents | Tour Operators | Travel and Leisure
Vicenza : Italy Trips Holidays and Vacations Travel
Vicenza Italy Hotels, Beach Resorts, Travel
and Tours
Vicenza Italy Hotels. Italy Trips Holidays and Vacations Travel offers wide choice of Vicenza hotel accommodations, Vicenza resort hotels and Vicenza beach resorts, Vicenza iterinaries, Vicenza travel and tours, Vicenza adventure, Vicenza diving, Vicenza eco-tourism and Vicenza honeymoon packages. Come book with us and share the delights of Vicenza Italy destination.
Featured Italy Hotels and Hotel Resorts in Vicenza
Italy Trips Holidays and Vacations Travel also offers helpful travel tips
and general information that will assist in making up your mind as where
to stay or visit while you are in Vicenza Italy
Italy Places and Destinations Rome, Florence, Milan, Venice, Agrigento, Albano, Alberobello, Alghero, Ancona, Aosta, Arezzo, Assisi, Bari, Barletta, Bergamo, Bisceglie, Bivigliano, Bologna, Brescia, Capri, Cascianaterme, Catania, Como, Cortinadamapezzo, Cremona, Ferrara, Florenceairport, Florenceborgo, Florencecalenzano, Florencepontassieve, Florencepratolino, Foggia, Forli, Genoa, Imola, Laspezia, Lecce, Messina, Milanmalpensa, Modena, Monastier, Montecatiniterme, Montesilvano, Naples, Noventadipiave, Orvieto, Padova, Palermo, Parma, Pavia, Pescara, Piacenza, Pisa, Portofino, Prato, Ravenna, Riccione, Rimini, Rivadelgarda, Romecasalpalocco, Romeciampino, Romefiumicino, Romepomezia, Salerno, Sangiovannirotondo, Sanremo, Santa Margherita Lig, Siena, Siracusa, Sorrento, Taormina, Taorminagiardnaxos, Taranto, Treviso, Trieste, Varese, Verona, Veronabussolengo, Vicenza
Austria, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Iceland, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine
Learning Archery
Archery is the art, practice, or skill of propelling arrows with the use of a bow, from Latin arcus. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat, while in modern times, its main use is that of a recreational activity. A person who participates in archery is typically known as an "archer" or "bowman", and one who is fond of or an expert at archery can be referred to as a "toxophilite". More articles about Learning Archery
Holidays Travel Agency Asia / Holidays Travel Agency Europe / Holidays Travel Agency Gold Middle East
Holidays Travel Agency Oceania / Holidays Travel Agency USA / Holidays Travel Agency Africa
Trips Holidays : Australia, Asia Travel, Africa Travel, Europe Travel, Middle East Travel, USA
Trip Holidays | About Us | Terms of Use
All Rights Reserved. © Copyright


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How do your skills and education stack-up against what employers are looking for?
Our Skills Check-Up will allow you to answer the same questions that employers and educational organizations have answered so that you can see
what jobs you may qualify for now and where you have gaps between your knowledge and skills and what is needed for the careers on this website.
Complete the form below by marking yes or no to each skill, and clicking on the Check My Skills button at the bottom of the page. There are a total of 54 skills. The results will show you how stack up against each career on this website.
To complete your Skills Check-Up, click on the Check My Skills button below.
Copyright Virginia Peninsula Career Pathways, 2011.


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Click here for useful information on EMV.
These documents provide practical guidance to EMV planning, as well as insights to products and services that you will be researching as you move forward with EMV, mobile commerce and other changes to payments.
Help for Merchants
EMV migration is a complicated topic because there is no "one implementation solution fits all" for retailers. That has created a significant amount of confusion for many merchants. ACT Canada offers many ways for merchants to get unbiased information and clarification. On this site the Merchant Forum is area where merchants can ask EMV migration questions and receive responses from peers and industry experts. The Merchant Strategic Leadership team actively supports merchants goals related to payment. Check the Merchant tab for more information. We feel that much can be gained from collective, open, and non-aligned discussions.
Chip Migration
Card issuers are using a standard called EMV, developed by Europay MasterCard, and VISA for chip-based debit and credit cards. This standard has been in use and proven in many countries around the world. Chip-based cards contain an embedded computer chip that chip-enabled terminals are able to read - providing increased protection against counterfeit and lost and stolen card fraud by validating the card and the cardholder. The migration to chip cards and point-of-sale terminals in Canada will take place over several years. Each financial institution and payment service provider has its own timelines and strategies for issuing chip cards and rolling out chip terminals.
About Us
EMV Canada is a web site provided by ACT Canada to provide a neutral forum for consumers, merchants and the media to learn and share information related to secure payment. Founded in 1989, as a non-profit membership association, ACT Canada helps members understand the market, public and private sector applications and potential opportunities and barriers. EMV Canada and ACT Canada take a non-partisan approach to all issues and facilitate cooperation among and between all stakeholder groups.
For more information about ACT Canada and our members, please visit www.actcda.com.


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The survivor mentor program builds supportive relationships with high-risk youth, current victims, and recovering survivors ages 12-25—providing care and community to vulnerable youth with histories of abusive and dysfunctional relationships. Recently, we held a mentor dinner to thank all of the wonderful people that do such a wonderful job of modeling wholesome relationships, encouraging a … Continue reading Mentor Memories
July Missionary Update
MY SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE We are a generation hungry for the miraculous. Longing to experience something beyond ourselves. And I'm not just talking about extroverted, charismatic Christians, I am referring to the population as a whole, especially the western world. For centuries now, we have discovered the in's and out's of everything this earth has to offer. We have come from … Continue reading July Missionary Update
June Missionary Update
It is very interesting traveling from place to place so quickly. I never realized that I was such a creature of habit. I thought I was quite "easy-going" and "chill" until I was alone, moving from country to country, with a foreign language as my only source of communication. I began realizing all the things … Continue reading June Missionary Update
Missionary Update
I have a growing obsession with Jazz music recently (no not because of la la land although that movie was straight $$) and as i continue to gain more and more experience in my own music, I realise more and more that Jazz is truly a confusing piece of art. I spent lots of my life … Continue reading Missionary Update
Immeasurably More
Immeasurably More (click to listen) The latest album by Shannon Sergey. Shannon Sergey is a singer, songwriter and author who is using her voice and writing to rescue child trafficking victims by donating 100% of the proceeds from her CD Immeasurably More and her book Something Beautiful to Forever Found. The unique part of "Immeasurably More" … Continue reading Immeasurably More


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WASHINGTON — Pope Francis, leader of the Roman Catholic Church, inducted 19 new cardinals while former pope Benedict was in attendance.
Reuters reported that Pope Francis urged unity among the cardinals and to avoid political infighting and bickering. Reuters called Benedict a "scandal-plagued predecessor" in their brief report.
Benedict's appearance was the first since his resignation a year ago and created an interesting situation of having a former pope and a current one attending the same papal rites.
The church has over 1.2 billion members, and has survived rocky scandals over the years.


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Meet Nancy Hoshaw, 73-Year-Old CrossFitter
Nancy Hoshaw had an unexpected turnaround. After a heart attack at age 48 and breast cancer at 60, she joined CrossFit.
"That made a big difference to me, and made me get to the gym."
She was skeptical, at first, about CrossFit. But a trainer, Jordan Cook, emphasized how so much of CrossFit is centered on functional exercise."If you fell down, what would you have to do to get back up? A burpee. If you are doing laundry and you pick something up, what are you going to have to do? A deadlift," says Cook.
These fundamental exercises have made Hoshaw feel more self-sufficient. She's now part of the CrossFit community, which keeps her active. Everyone encourages each other at the gym. "I like that positive attitude," says Hoshaw, "I think of it as a way of life. It's necessary for me to feel good and strong."
Hoshaw wasn't always sure about her destined role as an inspiration. Cook and some coworkers decided they needed to post something for CrossFit members to start preparing for the CrossFit Games. Cook knew it would inspire others if they saw Hoshaw getting set for the Games at her age. Hoshaw was hesitant, but an Instagram video of her working out went viral. The video was viewed thousands of times, and now Hoshaw knows how she can help others.
"I feel like I can encourage other people," says Hoshaw. And of CrossFit specifically, she says, "It's amazing the doors that you can open if you just give it a try."


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My Process: How @Grooveshark Helps Me Create More From Less.
It"s a ritual. It"s more like a dance that I do in my head. If I am not listening to music then my brain is sitting on the bench looking away at all the pretty butterflies floating around the world […]Read More


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Pole Position Series 01 Round 02: BTS Rehearsal
Welcome back for Round Two of RyanTimeTV's Pole Position! Here's some behind-the-scenes rehearsal footage of the boys gettin' down. Alec Tone, GK Williams, and Matthew return, while Cole's AWOL but expected back for Round Three! We also have a new competitor, Cooper Roads (twitter @CooperRoadsXXX) and he's bringin' tha' booty bounce.
So who's gonna' come out on top?! Lemme know what you think and stay tuned because up next we've got Coaches Feedback…
Subscribe to our Channel and don't miss a beat, check out RYANTIMETV.com and you can always catch me on my gnarly twitter @RyanRussellXXX
Thanks to Spa Excess, Toronto's premiere and largest bathhouse for men for prizes and sponsoring this segment. If you search the darkest corners, you'll probably find Ryan Russell lurking; it's his favourite local baths!
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel and never miss when we're streaming LIVE, or join us at Flash at 463 Church St.
PLUS Tune in for the X-RATED stream at Cam4.com/RYANRUSSELL from 9PM.