Literature has shown that assessment has various purposes in education, ranging from establishing the starting point, to monitoring and evaluation, while the role of assessment in supporting learning is yet to be explored. In this study I explore the influence of assessment on teaching in the Lesotho junior certificate science curriculum. I achieve this by exploring the nature tools of summative assessment, teachers’ views on these tools and how teachers engage the tools once they have served the summative assessment purpose. In exploring the nature of tools of assessment I conducted a documentary analysis of junior certificate science papers written over three years, and obtained teachers’ views on the papers and their uses through a questionnaire and a focus group interview. The study is predominantly qualitative and interpretive and is informed by three theories; curriculum theory; which explains the cyclic relationship of the curriculum elements, Bloom’s taxonomy which guides the drawing of educational objectives and construction of tools of assessment and social theories explaining reflection on and understanding of one’s social practices. Analysis of the past examination papers showed that they are relatively valid for the syllabus for which they are designed, though there are some discrepancies. Teachers find the questions in the examination papers appropriate for use in teaching, though they need to be simplified at times. The question papers also assess the understanding of science in the context of life around the learner. The uses to which teachers put past examination papers range from planning to testing and the most common uses are teaching and testing. According to the findings, past examination papers do have an influence on what teachers select for teaching and how they approach what they have selected. Further recommendations that I can make on the basis of this study are; that teachers can derive themes for action research from which they can build pedagogical content knowledge for various topics. Finally, they can also be used as a source of a variety of tasks for learners.

Fluorine-18 Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography (F-18 FDG PET-CT) is now established in the staging, restaging and therapy response monitoring of Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) and high grade Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HG NHL), specifically for nodal disease and extra-nodal disease excluding the bone marrow. The role of FDG PET-CT for evaluating bone marrow involvement in HL and HG NHL has not been established yet. There are however several publications on this subject but no consensus has been reached. Bone marrow trephine biopsy (BMB) is the gold standard for bone marrow assessment in lymphoma. Although the occurrence of adverse effects is uncommon, BMB is an invasive procedure that may induce anxiety in patients. A retrospective review of FDG PET-CT bone marrow findings of HL patients referred for a staging scan from June 2008 to January 2014 was done, these findings were compared to the BMB findings also done as part of initial staging. The findings of 55 patients were reviewed analysed.

This series of studies was the first to evaluate the effects of the Section 28 pilot study on the treatment of vulnerable child witnesses in English Crown Courts. Section 28 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act implemented mandatory Ground Rules Hearings, during which the judge, lawyers, and intermediary (if applicable) discussed appropriate accommodations to be made for child witnesses, following which the cross-examination could be pre-recorded. Analyses examined 43 cases that implemented the special measures ('Section 28' cases) and 44 cases that did not implement the special measures ('Non-Section 28' cases) that took place between 2012 and 2016. Analyses revealed that children in the Section 28 cases experienced less systemic delay than their counterparts. In addition, the trial preparation in the Section 28 cases was more thorough and this was associated with less risky questioning in the cross-examinations. However, younger children experienced longer delays and had fewer accommodations made for them than older children, regardless of condition. Additional analyses demonstrated that the forensic interviews replaced the evidence-in-chief in most cases almost entirely, with prosecutors asking few substantive questions. In the Section 28 cases, defense lawyers used fewer suggestive questions and asked less complex questions than Non-Section 28 defense lawyers. However, both types of lawyers still predominantly asked option-posing questions. Regardless of condition, defense lawyers asked fewer suggestive questions than their counterparts in other common-law countries and they asked younger children less complex questions. Results indicate that, although the Section 28 pilot study has not fixed all of the existing problems, it has significantly reduced systemic delay and improved the treatment of child witnesses in Crown Courts and thus should be rolled out nationally. As well, regardless of condition, English lawyers and judges seem receptive to recent special measures and appear to be effectively implementing them.

It is a well-known fact that international trade contracts bear inherently more risk than the trade contracts entered by the parties from the same country. This is due to the differences in business methods and practices used, trade cultures of the parties involved, laws and regulations in the respective jurisdictions. Under these circumstances, it is very important for the seller to have the assurance of that he receives the payment for the goods dispatched and for the buyer to receive the goods what has been ordered. One effective way of having such an assurance is to rely on a letter of credit as an international payment method. But for exporters in particular, this payment method has presented difficulties in meeting the compliance requirements necessary for the payment to be triggered. The UCP 600 published by the International Chamber of Commerce provide the rules that govern letters of credit transactions. At the introduction of the UCP 600, it was aimed to remove wording that could lead to inconsistent application and interpretation, as against the language and style used in the previous version, namely the UCP 500. Highlighting the experiences under UCP 500, the ultimate focus of the revision of the UCP was to minimise the level of litigations that had arisen under the rules provided in the UCP. In several surveys, it has been reported that, nearly 50% of the first presentation for payment under letters of credit are rejected by the banks. This situation implies the fact that the provisions which cover letters of credit transactions are not either clear enough or well understood by the parties involved. Similarly, the decisions made by Courts around the world on issues related to letters of credit have taken different approaches when applying and interpreting the rules. This can clearly be seen by a myriad of controversial judicial standards which have been applied to similar mistakes in documents presented to the bank for payment. This thesis is an investigation into those issues to find out the optimal standards that could be applied to solve the said problems. In doing so, this thesis will strive to ascertain what remedial measures could be taken to address the issues related to examination of documents, the rejection of payment and fraud exception. Key words: International Trade, International Trade Law, Law of Letters of Credit, Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credit 600, Examination of Documents and communicating the decision.

The Baker Act is legislation that provides civil rights for individuals suspected of having a mental illness and may be in need of involuntary psychiatric evaluation. Its intent is to prevent the indiscriminate placement of individuals in residential treatment facilities and other restrictive placements. Referrals for involuntary psychiatric evaluation under Baker Act statutes have increased among children and adolescents in recent years, raising concerns related its use with this population. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between school based factors and the use of the Baker Act among children and adolescents. Results indicate that the use of the Baker Act is more prevalent receiving among the high school population, females, Other/mixed children and adolescents, and White children and adolescents. Multiple regression analyses indicated that school district variables (e.g., minority enrollment, graduation rates, out-of-school suspension, etc.) contributed to a statistically significant proportion of the variance in Baker Act ER rates and repeat Baker Act ER rates among the 67 counties in the state of Florida. The percent of students in a district that graduated with a standard diploma was the variables that most consistently contribute to a unique proportion of the variance in Baker Act ER and repeat Baker Act ER rates. The findings from the study have implications for the design of mental health and behavioral support systems for children and adolescents. Additional research is necessary to more closely examine the relationship between demographics, school related variables, and the use of the Baker Act.

Precision dairy monitoring technologies can be used to monitor changes in physiology and behavior associated with transition period postpartum diseases and heat stress. Research Objective One was to evaluate how traditional visual examination, body condition, and locomotion with and without blood, milk, and urine variables and precision dairy monitoring technologies determine variable association with hyperketonemia, metritis, mastitis, hypocalcemia and retained placenta,. This was accomplished by monitoring cows 2 weeks before calving to 3 weeks after calving for any postpartum diseases using daily visual examination and automatically detected variables including activity, milk yield, milk components, lying behavior, feeding behavior, rumination time, and reticulorumen temperature. Deviations in reticulorumen temperature, milk production, eating time, lying time, and activity were detected by precision dairy monitoring technologies among cows with postpartum diseases. Research Objective Two was to determine the association between automatically detected variables and heat stress. This objective was accomplished by monitoring cows under natural ventilation, fans, and fans plus sprinklers for variations under each condition. Changes in physiology and behavior as detected by precision dairy monitoring technologies was associated with postpartum diseases and heat stress. Using precision dairy monitoring technologies and visual examinations may aid producers in identifying postpartum disease and heat stress.

This was an exploratory study of 243 MFTs in the states of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. A majority (66%) reported that they had been in therapy at some time during their careers. The purposes of this research were to (a) find out how therapists effectively and ethically cope with stress, (b) find out more about the therapists who do not utilize therapy, and (c) find out what barriers therapists face in seeking therapy when they do need or desire it. Effective coping strategies for stress included religious activities, exercise, and spending time with family and friends. Characteristics associated with not having been to therapy were being male, in a first marriage, Latter-day Saint, working in a for-profit agency with inpatient clients, licensed in Utah, and having at least three children. The most common barriers to seeking therapy were "I can handle my own problem(s) effectively enough without therapy" and "My problem(s) is/are not significant enough."

The intent of this research was to examine variables that might influence the response rates to mailed questionnaires. The variables examined were the socioeconomic statuses of the subjects, the time of payment of a monetary incentive, and the amount of payment. Subjects were 375 residents of Cache County, Utah, selected from three levels of socioeconomic status. The subjects were selected on the basis of information they provided about their income and education levels during a telephone interview. Subjects within each level of socioeconomic status were further divided into four treatment groups and one control group. All groups were mailed the questionnaire. In addition, subjects in Group 1 were sent an enclosed $1, those in Group 2 received $2, those in Group 3 were promised $1 if they returned the completed questionnaire, those in Group 4 were similarly promised $2 if they returned a completed questionnaire, and subjects in Group 5 were neither paid nor promised any incentive. The questionnaire itself was developed with the help of Utah State University's Extension Services, who needed to survey the local population on issues pertaining to family and economic well-being. The response rate for the entire sample was 56.8%. Subjects from the high socioeconomic status group had the highest response rate, while subjects with the lowest socioeconomic status had the lowest response rate. Including the monetary incentive along with the questionnaire yielded a higher response rate than did promising an incentive for returning the questionnaire. Similarly, subjects receiving $2 had a higher response rate than those receiving $1. It was also found that the higher the socioeconomic status, the less the difference made by the time of payment of the incentive. When the cost effectiveness of the different treatments was analyzed it was found that at the higher levels of response rate, prepaying the incentive was a more efficient method, while promising the incentive proved cheaper at the lower levels of response rate.

A written objective-type waiver examination for the introductory foods course at Utah State University has been developed and evaluated. Results of the study showed that the examination improved with revision. In addition, it was found that there was a statistically significant relationship between the score students achieved on the waiver examination and the total numerical score representing the final grade in the basic foods course. There was apparently no significant relationship between the number of years experience students had in food preparation, the type of experience in food preparation, and their performance on the waiver examination. Apparently depth of knowledge of basic food preparation principles was a more important factor than just years or breadth of experience (skill) in contributing to the waiver examination score. The waiver examination has been adopted for use by the Department of Food and Nutrition at Utah State University. Recommendations are made regarding use of the examination and the possible need for re-evaluation of the curriculum for introductory foods work.

A growing body of research suggests that cross-examination may be detrimental to the accuracy of children�s event reports. The primary goal of the present research was to investigate three specific ways in which the negative effect of cross-examination could be reduced. Experiment 1 examined the effect of reducing the delay between the collection of the primary evidence and cross-examination. Five- and 6-year-old children (N = 76) took part in a staged event and were interviewed 1 to 2 days later. In this interview, children were asked to recall everything they could remember about the event. Children were then asked specific yes/no questions. Next, either 1 to 3 days or 8 months later, all children were interviewed for a second time in a cross-examination format. The 8-month delay was equivalent to the average delay experienced by children in New Zealand courts (Lash, 1995). The aim of the cross-examination interview was to talk the children out of their original responses, irrespective of the accuracy of their original account. Cross-examination questioning had a significant negative effect on the accuracy of children�s reports, regardless of timing. That is, children cross-examined soon after the memory event performed no better than those who were cross-examined after an 8-month delay. Furthermore, one week after cross-examination, children were interviewed again. The purpose of this interview was to establish whether children actually believed the responses they had given during cross-examination. During this interview, many children reversed what they had said during cross-examination, indicating that the responses they had given during cross-examination were due primarily to compliance to authority. Given the finding that compliance to authority played a significant role in children�s cross-examination performance in Experiment 1, Experiment 2 addressed whether a pre-interview intervention aimed to decrease compliance would reduce the negative impact of cross-examination. Five- and 6-year-old children (n = 59) and 9- and 10-year-old children (n = 62) participated in the same staged event and were interviewed for their primary evidence as in Experiment 1. Prior to the cross-examination interview, however, some children were warned that the interviewer might ask some questions which were tricky and that it was okay to tell her that she was wrong. Warning children prior to the cross-examination interview did not reduce the negative impact of cross-examination for either age group, even when the warning was delivered by the cross-examining interviewer. Experiment 3 addressed whether a more intensive pre-interview intervention could reduce the negative impact of cross-examination. Using the same experimental procedures as Experiment 2, half of the 5- and 6-year-old children (n = 77) and 9- and 10-year-old children (n = 87) received a practice and feedback session with cross-examination type questions prior to the target interview. While cross-examination still resulted in a decrease in children�s accuracy, children in the preparation condition performed significantly better than the control children. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that the negative effect of cross-examination is highly robust and that compliance appears to be the underlying mechanism responsible for this. A practice and feedback session targeting the factors that contribute to compliance reduced, but did not eliminate, the negative effect of this questioning style. Therefore, children�s accuracy may be facilitated to some extent by cross-examination preparation prior to testifying.