It is imperative to identify the structural characteristics that influence academic performance so that we are aware of the impact that policy change has on the educational outcomes of our youth. This study used district-level regression analysis to identify the influence of socioeconomic status, per-pupil funding, and student-to-teacher ratio on the academic performance of students in Virginia's public schools. The data set was created by linking data from the U.S. Census and the Virginia Superintendent's Report. Four assumptions were tested: as median income increases (socioeconomic status), academic performance improves; as per-pupil funding increases, academic performance improves; increases in student-to-teacher ratios lead to poorer academic performance; and when socioeconomic status is controlled, the influence of race upon academic performance is greatly diminished. Previous literature suggests: that a positive correlation exists between socioeconomic status and academic performance; that a negative correlation exists between student-to-teacher ratio and academic performance; that results are mixed regarding the correlation between per-pupil funding and academic performance; and that residual racial effects persist despite the control of socioeconomic status. The regression analysis yielded significant results concerning the socioeconomic status and race variables, results that are presented and discussed in this paper. / Master of Science

Traditional laser scanning systems, such as those used for microscopy, typically image objects of finite thickness. If the depth-of-focus of such systems is low, as is the case when a simple clear pupil is used, the object must be very thin or the image will be distorted. Several methods have been developed to deal with this problem. A microscope with a thin annular pupil has a very high depth-of-focus and can image the entire thickness of a sample, but most of the laser light is blocked, and the image shows poor contrast and high noise. In confocal laser microscopy, the depth-of-focus problem is eliminated by using a small aperture to discard information from all but one thin plane of the sample. However, such a system requires scanning passes at many different depths to yield an image of the entire thickness of the sample, which is a time-consuming process and is highly sensitive to registration errors. In this thesis, a novel type of scanning system is considered. The sample is simultaneously scanned with a combination of two Gaussian laser beams of different widths and slightly different temporal frequencies. Information from scanning with the two beams is recorded with a photodetector, separated electronically, and processed to form an image. This image is similar to one formed by a system using a difference-of-Gaussians pupil, except no light has been blocked or wasted. Also, the entire sample can be scanned in one pass. The depth-of-focus characteristics of this synthesized difference-of-Gaussians pupil are examined and compared with those of well-known / Master of Science

The Swedish education system has undergone decentralisation and deregulation since the late 1970s. The 1999 parliamentary resolution for a 5-year experiment of increased school autonomy in time allocation, was a late step in this development. Approximately 900 compulsory schools in 79 municipalities no longer had to adhere to the regulation of the national time schedule. The overall aim of this thesis is to describe and analyse changes of time allocation and time use in schools during the experiment. The analysis has the theories and research by Basil Bernstein and Michael Fullan as the point of departure. Framing and classification, educational change and teachers’ work culture are some of the key concepts. The results from interviews with 32 local directors formed the basis of selection of three participating municipalities and schools in the longitudinal study. The sample included both municipalities participating and some not participating in the experiment. The schools had varying motives for participating, and different initial time allocation strategies and procedures. However, they all shared an ambition to strengthen curriculum and school development. Pupils, teachers and head teachers from three classes and teacher teams in the three schools were interviewed and observed over a period of two years. Documents on time use and policies from the three schools were analysed. No dramatic changes were observed. Changes rarely meant a redistribution of time between contents/subjects or pupils. Instead they were predominantly about weakened boundaries between subjects and teachers, increased teacher control over the work and giving pupils more influence over their own learning situation. So called open lessons, when pupils were allowed to choose what, where and how to study, cross-disciplinary studies and subject-integrated teamwork facilitated this. A majority of pupils and teachers appreciated the increased freedom and control over their work. Some teachers, however, tended to be more hesitant, pointing to risks of work overload and lowered academic achievement. Both teachers and pupils doubted that all pupils could manage highly autonomous studies, and agreed that some needed more structure and help from the teachers. Teachers in practical and aesthetic subjects were often constrained from engaging in cross-disciplinary studies and teamwork. Having one’s teaching assignment divided between many different classes and even schools, and lack of premises were commonly mentioned obstacles. Committed head teachers and well-functioning teacher teams were significant factors were commonly in the observed development process. Also, active support from the municipality and network-participation were contributing factors. Attention is drawn to the fact that it is not possible to relate the observed changes exclusively to the time schedule experiment. They were feasible within the existing, flexible frames of the national time schedule. Furthermore, a number of other changes occurred parallel to the experiment.

The present dissertation investigates pupil fraternities in the Swedish state grammar school system from 1850 to 1914, in an effort to contribute to the understanding of peer group socialisation as part of the overall pedagogical process. Focus is trained on the practice of liberal education (Sw. bildning ) and the construction of collective identity. Modern pupil associations emerged in the mid-nineteenth century from the ruins of outdated educational traditions. Due to sharpened discipline, institutional changes and external societal pressure, previously existing corporative modes of organisation successively disappeared. To fill the void, pupils began founding fraternities, thereby introducing a new organisational form and a new set of activities based on an ideological foundation more in sync with the ideals of the emerging industrial society. Infused with the liberal, neo-Romantic ideals of the day, the introduction of fraternal life laid out new tools for selfadministered socialisation. After analysing the growth of pupil associations in the mid- nineteenth century, the thesis concentrates on fraternal practice at one particular institution, Umeå State Grammar School. This case study shows that fraternal activity revolved around creating lending libraries and reading circles, assemblies, school magazines and aesthetic pursuits including musicmaking, singing, acting and dancing. The thesis suggests that the fraternity had a structuring impact on the student body as a whole, serving to homogenise the school experience and provide a viable alternative to the allurements of town life. Subjects favoured by the fraternity included philosophy and ethics, literature and history and, to a lesser extent, current events. A slight shift in interest toward the natural sciences can be detected at the end of the period under investigation. Furthermore, it is revealed that peer socialisation encouraged identification with the school. It transmitted a set of values stressing idealism and anti-materialism, patriotism and regionalism, intellectualism (as opposed to athleticism), religious and/or secular piety, historism, cultural and political traditionalism, an acknowledgement of the powers – and limitations – of youth and an idealisation of friendship and camraderie. Insofar as social mores and relationships between the sexes was concerned, peer socialisation also provided pupils with practical instruction on proper conduct, and laid the foundation for an ambiguous understanding of the opposite sex. It promoted an ideal of masculinity closely associated with what may be characterised as the civil servant ideal. The thesis finally reveals that strong links were forged between fraternities on a regional, nationwide and Nordic level, bearing strong resemblance to contemporary social youth movements regarding attitudes toward society, culture and knowledge. Upper secondary school fraternities considered themselves guardians of the nation and its culture and became a conformist force in late nineteenth-century Sweden. On the other hand, pupils also constituted an active force in the modernisation of Swedish institutional practice, in the vitalisation of the state grammar schools, and as forerunners in the conceptualisation of a new cult of youth.

The aim of this study is to acquire knowledge regarding democratic education in upper secondary school programmes with different gender and social class profiles. It covers the teaching in and about democracy, pupils’ power-positions and their attempts to affect routine school activities. A particular focus of attention was processes of influence, through which the pupils themselves pursue issues in school. The analysis is based on theories and previous research focused on gender and class perspectives of fostering democracy. Basil Bernstein’s theories regarding power, control and pedagogic codes, in combination with feminist theories (principally those of Arnot, Reay, Skeggs, Gordon and Walkerdine), form the basis of the theoretical framework. Ethnographic methods have been applied, including participatory observations, conversations, interviews, and analysis of relevant documents over one academic year. Two Swedish upper secondary school classes were followed: one from the vocational Child and Recreation Programme and one from the academic Natural Science Programme. Teaching students about democracy and invitations for them to exert influence appeared generally to be unplanned and were marginalised in school. The few invitations that occurred had an individual stamp and focused on pupils’ choices, responsibilities and duties, rather than on their rights in school. Democracy was presented in the form of facts about formal democracy and formal participation in democracy in the future, while a more critical   attitude and possible influence strategies for youths were marginalised. Pupils in both classes wished and attempted to influence teaching, primarily through informal means. There were, however, significant differences between the classes in what they were able to influence. Analysis of pupils’ voices in relation to the pedagogic context revealed that the power relationships in these influence processes depend partly on the focal academic subject. More   importantly, they also differ between the upper secondary school programs, which differ in strength of classification (sensu Bernstein), demands, pace and difficulty levels. These   differences are related, in turn, to whether the programmes are intended to prepare the pupils for higher education and/or a vocation after school. Generally, the Child and Recreation pupils exerted influence more successfully when they wished to reduce the pace and difficulty of lessons than when they wished to get more out of their education, while the opposite applied to the Natural Science class. Who had influence over what was principally   related to the programmes’ gender and class profiles and the pupils’ expected positions in society. / Ett aktivt medborgarskap? Om demokratifostran i gymnasieskolan

Bakgrund: Pupillövervakning är en del i den neurologiska bedömningen med hög relevans för neurokirurgiska intensivvårdspatienter. Den finns även beskriven som del i smärt- och sederingsövervakning. Syfte: Att undersöka hur specialistsjuksköterskor inom neurokirurgisk intensivvård använder sig av pupillövervakning i sitt arbete. Metod: Studien utfördes som en semistrukturerad intervjustudie. Sex sjuksköterskor verksamma inom neurokirurgisk intensivvård intervjuades. Materialet analyserades och presenterades i form av teman och kategorier. Resultat: De två teman som framkom var Att följa förlopp och Att utvärdera tillförlitlighet. Att följa förlopp innebar att pupillövervakningen beskrevs som en del i att följa patientens status och för att vidta, avvakta med och utvärdera omvårdnadsinterventioner. Dokumentering och rapportering av pupillövervakningen visade sig ha stor betydelse för att följa patientens förlopp. I temat Att utvärdera tillförlitlighet framkom att sjuksköterskorna, med hjälp av pupillövervakning, beskrevs skilja faktiska förändringar i patientens status mot felvärden på grund av tekniska problem, men även för att kontrollera om en känsla hos sjuksköterskan överensstämde med verkligheten. Slutsats: Vårt resultat har visat att specialistsjuksköterskor inom neurokirurgisk intensivvård använder pupillövervakning inte bara för att följa patienters status och för att utvärdera interventioner utan även för att utvärdera tekniken och känslans tillförlitlighet. / Background: Pupil monitoring is part of the neurological assessment of high relevance to the neurosurgical intensive care patients. It is also described as part of pain and sedation monitoring. Objective: To investigate how specialist nurses in neurosurgical intensive care use pupil monitoring in their work. Method: The study was conducted as a semi-structured interview study. Six nurses working in neurosurgical intensive care were interviewed. The material was analyzed and presented in terms of themes and categories. Results: The two themes that emerged were To follow the course and To evaluate reliability. To follow the course meant that the pupil monitoring was described as part of monitoring and evaluating patient status and to take, defer, and evaluate nursing interventions. Documentation and reporting of pupil monitoring proved to be very important to follow patients' progress. The theme To evaluate the reliability revealed that nurses, with the help of pupil supervision, was described to distinguish actual changes in patient status to error values because of technical problems, but also to verify whether a sense of the nurse were in line with reality. Conclusion: Our results have shown that specialist nurses in neurosurgical intensive care use pupil monitoring not only to monitor patients' status and to evaluate interventions but also to evaluate the technology and reliability of emotional influence.

The aim of this work is to design algorithm that will detect pupil from video. The theoretical knowledge necessary for proper pupil detection is also described in this master’s thesis. Detection is done on 24 videos that are converted to single images. The complete result the dependence of the pupil diameter on the used dioptre. The overall success rate of the algorithm is 88,13 %. The overall error is 11,87 %. For 17 out of 24 patients, it is confirmed that the greater the dioptre, the larger the pupil.

Eye tracking has a number of useful applications ranging from monitoring a vehicle driver for possible signs of fatigue, providing an interface to enable severely disabled people to communicate with others, to a number of medical applications. Most eye tracking applications require a non-intrusive way of tracking the eyes, making a camera-based approach a natural choice. However, although significant progress has been made in recent years, modern eye tracking systems still have not overcome a number of challenges including eye occlusions, variable ambient lighting conditions and inter-subject variability. This thesis describes the complete design and implementation of a real-time camera-based eye tracker, which was developed mainly for indoor applications. The developed eye tracker relies on the so-called bright/dark pupil effect for both the eye detection and eye tracking phases. The bright/dark pupil effect was realised by the development of specialised hardware and near-infrared illumination, which were interfaced with a machine vision camera. For the eye detection phase the performance of three different types of classifiers, namely neurals networks, SVMs and AdaBoost were directly compared with each other on a dataset consisting of 17 individual subjects from different ethnic backgrounds. For the actual tracking of the eyes, a Kalman filter was combined with the mean-shift tracking algorithm. A PC application with a graphical user interface (GUI) was also developed to integrate the various aspects of the eye tracking system, which allows the user to easily configure and use the system. Experimental results have shown the eye detection phase to be very robust, whereas the eye tracking phase was also able to accurately track the eyes from frame-to-frame in real-time, given a few constraints. AFRIKAANS : Oogvolging het ’n beduidende aantal toepassings wat wissel van die deteksie van bestuurderuitputting, die voorsiening van ’n rekenaarintervlak vir ernstige fisies gestremde mense, tot ’n groot aantal mediese toepassings. Die meeste toepassings van oogvolging vereis ’n nie-indringende manier om die oë te volg, wat ’n kamera-gebaseerde benadering ’n natuurlike keuse maak. Alhoewel daar alreeds aansienlike vordering gemaak is in die afgelope jare, het moderne oogvolgingstelsels egter nogsteeds verskeie uitdagings nie oorkom nie, insluitende oog okklusies, veranderlike beligtingsomstandighede en variansies tussen gebruikers. Die verhandeling beskryf die volledige ontwerp en implementering van ’n kamera-gebaseerde oogvolgingsstelsel wat in reële tyd werk. Die ontwikkeling van die oogvolgingsstelsel maak staat op die sogenaamde helder/donker pupil effek vir beide die oogdeteksie en oogvolging fases. Die helder/donker pupil effek was moontlik gemaak deur die ontwikkeling van gespesialiseerde hardeware en naby-infrarooi illuminasie. Vir die oogdeteksie fase was die akkuraatheid van drie verskillende tipes klassifiseerders getoets en direk vergelyk, insluitende neurale netwerke, SVMs en AdaBoost. Die datastel waarmee die klassifiseerders getoets was, het bestaan uit 17 individuele toetskandidate van verskillende etniese groepe. Vir die oogvolgings fase was ’n Kalman filter gekombineer met die gemiddelde-verskuiwings algoritme. ’n Rekenaar program met ’n grafiese gebruikersintervlak was ontwikkel vir ’n persoonlike rekenaar, sodat al die verskillende aspekte van die oogvolgingsstelsel met gemak opgestel kon word. Eksperimentele resultate het getoon dat die oogdeteksie fase uiters akkuraat en robuust was, terwyl die oogvolgings fase ook hoogs akuraat die oë gevolg het, binne sekere beperkinge. Copyright / Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering / unrestricted

The goal of diploma thesis is to follow and capture the changes in the relationship of the central characters of schools, i.e. the teacher and the student. This change is however closely related to the time context and the development of school as an institution. Current pedagogic trends, the church and political circumstances also play a role. I will monitor the change of the relationship between the teacher and the student approximately from the second half of the 15th century until today. This work has a character of a historical study and thus I will use mostly the historic and historic comparative method. Therefore, it will not contain a practical part, but will include only the theoretical one. The necessary information will be taken from historical and contemporary literature.

Annotation: The thesis includes both theory and original research. It focuses on a pupil in early childhood in the context of social group and school classroom. The thesis deals with the relationship between a pupil's classroom status and his academic results. The conclusions are based on the results of research of primary school pupils.