Manchester Metropolitan University Student receives Econsultancy’s first David Hughes Award for Excellence in Digital Marketing

The focus of the award is to provide the successful student with plenty of visibility in the industry. Jenny will contribute to the Econsultancy blog regarding her experiences of digital education through university and her subsequent search for work. She will also be featured on the soon to be launched careers section of the site and Econsultancy’s CEO, Ashley Friedlein, will be offering career mentoring over the coming six months.

David Edmundson-Bird, who acted as Jenny’s dissertation supervisor in her final year at Manchester Metropolitan University Business School, said: “The award is a great way for undergraduates to gain recognition outside the educational system and the backing of Econsultancy and David’s name lends significant weight to their achievements. Jenny is an extremely deserving graduate with great prospects and our hope is that the award will continue to gain credibility as a mark of excellence in digital marketing education.”

Jenny Thaw said, “Winning the award was quite a surprise. The digital marketing aspect of my degree was fascinating and I’m extremely pleased with the results I achieved. I’m pleased to have found a position straight out of university and I hope to continue to grow my experience in this field. The award certainly adds to my CV – I think this kind of recognition from respected organisations in the industry is invaluable to recent graduates and I hope that the award grows in terms of success and recognition.”

NEWS BY:http://econsultancy.com/us/press-releases/6081-manchester-metropolitan-university-student-receives-econsultancy-s-first-david-hughes-award-for-excellence-in-digital-marketing

Master Business Administration (MBA) in Belgium

More and more professionals are trying to make their careers a jolt by signing up for Master Business Administration (MBA)  programmes. After reading this article you will learn how to select a MBA programme, what is MBA rankings and where to find MBA courses in Belgium.

In our time the idea of returning to school after ten or more years as a prosperous international executive looks rather strange for some people, but every year many working specialists are deciding to do this with other MBAs and executive MBAs.

The market in executive business education has developed a lot in recent years. By the experts' estimation, there are over 3,500 various programmеs all over the world that provide an opportunity for students to earn a Masters in Business Administration.

MBAs are just one way open to executives looking to give their careers a motivation. Potential students can sign up for executive education business courses, choose for part-time or full time studies, learn about management sciences, or take training in-company.

NEWS BY:http://www.eurogates.nl/news/a/3447/

This challenging game takes learning out of the classroom and delivers directly to children themselves. The educational aspect is enveloped into the game-play delivering a naturally immersive experience promoting learning in a fun, interactive way.

The game covers the following citizenship topics:

    * Internet safety and cyber bullying
    * Gangs and knife crime
    * Anti-social behaviour
    * Energy saving and the environment
    * The dangers of alcohol, drugs and tobacco

Alex Phennah, Marketing Manager from AP Edutech comments:
“When we were looking to develop an app to educate children about citizenship topics, we thought about several ways we could reach children on these issues. Looking at all the traditional educational apps we thought ‘how we can make this learning experience more fun?’ so that children would choose to open the app and engage with it regularly. If I was to choose between a game or an educational app I know what I would choose! So we decided to integrate elements of some of the best games out there by making our game highly addictive and easy to use.”

Initial feedback is that adults are enjoying the game as much as children. With the ability to turn off the questions, and with its quick learning curve, the game is suitable for the whole family to play. But some adults seem to be still playing the game with the questions on and are enjoying the challenge.

NEWS BY:http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/12/prweb9041265.htm

UK to "accept in full" ICB bank reforms - Cable

The government will give its full backing to a shake-up of the banking sector proposed by the country's Independent Commission on Banking (ICB), Business Secretary Vince Cable said on Sunday.

"Our own financial services sector needs reform. Our big banks were at the very centre of the financial crisis, what the Europeans call Anglo-Saxon financial capitalism. It needs reform," Liberal Democrat minister Cable told the BBC.

"That's why tomorrow, the government is going to launch this initiative on the banks accepting in full the Vickers commission. We're going to proceed with the separation of the banks, the casinos and the retail business lending parts of the bank," he added.

In September, the ICB - headed by Oxford University academic Sir John Vickers - said top banks should "ring-fence" or protect their retail banking operations from their riskier investment banking arms, in order to give better protection to taxpayers in case of future financial crises.

It said banks should hold core capital of 10 percent, plus a further 7 to 10 percent of capital that could take the form of "bail-in" bonds - debt that can take a loss or convert into equity to recapitalise a bank if it hits trouble.

There would also be limits to the extent to which a bank could use money in its retail arm for its investment bank - a move that will increase funding costs for British lenders.

NEWS BY:http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/12/18/uk-britain-banks-cable-idUKTRE7BH07E20111218

Changes to UK visa system are putting off international students, poll suggests

Many international students believe that changes to the UK’s visa system mean they are no longer welcome to study in the country, according to a survey.

The survey by the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) whose members include every UK university as well as many higher and further education colleges, found that almost one in five, 19%, disagreed with the statement that ‘the UK welcomes well qualified international students’. A further fifth, 20%, neither agreed or disagreed.

    ‘The fact that nearly four in 10 of those well qualified students who successfully gained places and visas did not endorse the statement that the UK welcomes international students is a very real cause of concern,’ the report concluded.

The poll did find that 70% of students applying from overseas found the visa application process quick and efficient, compared to 59% who said the same in 2009.

But over half, 52%, reported they had encountered confusion or difficulty due to changes to the visa system. Just 28% said they thought the cost of a visa was reasonable, down from 33% in 2009.

The survey found that changing the rules in the middle of an admissions cycle caused confusion or difficulty for more than half of the students, with a further 10% having to take extra English language tests or pre-sessional courses. Some of the students who had to take the extra English test were from majority English speaking countries such as Singapore and South Africa and found it ‘completely illogical’.

NEWS BY:http://www.expatforum.com/britain/changes-to-uk-visa-system-are-putting-off-international-students-poll-suggests.html

NAIFA's Robert Miller pushes for compromise on fiduciary issue

Robert Miller isn't a typical member of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors His firm, Miller-Pomerantz and Associates, is located in the New York financial district near Zuccotti Park and in the same building as the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association. His clientele in large part comprises Wall Street bankers and New York lawyers.

Yet as the organization's president, Mr. Miller, 57, maintains that the vast majority of NAIFA's 50,000 members operate small businesses in small towns. In his narrative, they are part of middle America, building relationships and serving middle-income clients.

Mr. Miller hopes to persuade the Securities and Exchange Commission not to impose a type of fiduciary-duty standard on NAIFA's registered representatives that he contends would force them to abandon the commission-based business model that thrives under the suitability standard.

Perhaps it is a good thing that the tall, lanky Mr. Miller laughs easily. He will need his sense of humor over the next year that he serves as NAIFA's president.

Mr. Miller is heading a group that is accused by advocates of being the primary obstacle to a universal fiduciary-duty standard of care.


NEWS BY:http://www.investmentnews.com/article/20111127/REG/311279987

MPI VANESSA COTTON MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP WINNER ANNOUNCED

Final year hospitality student at the School of Tourism at Bournemouth University, Dominique Dashwood-Evans, has won the Vanessa Cotton Memorial Scholarship 2011.

MPI UK and Ireland Chapter President, Samme Allen, proudly announced this year’s winner during the association’s cocktail reception at European meetings and incentive trade show EITBM in Barcelona.

The scholarship will provide Dashwood-Evans with sponsored registration, accommodation and travel to experience the professional development and networking at the European Meetings and Events Conference (EMEC) taking place in Budapest from 29 to 31 January 2012.

“Dominique’s application was well thought out and she clearly has a passion for our industry based on the work she has done to date [mostly on a voluntary basis],” said Allen. “In the judges’ opinion she demonstrated a strong understanding of the value and significance of this award.”

The winner will be mentored at EMEC 2012 by members of the UK Chapter board and members of the Excel London and Reed Travel Exhibitions (RTE) team.

“Winning the scholarship was a huge surprise, attending the conference will provide me with the opportunity to develop a more professional presentation building my confidence for future occasions,” said Dashwood-Evans. “It will also prove invaluable for my dissertation which looks into how social media can influence the decision making of events planners, as social media is a topic that will be covered in the specific interest sessions at the conference.




NEWS BY:http://www.c-mw.net/newsdetails/1804/mpi-vanessa-cotton-memorial-scholarship-winner-announced

Government funds ad apprenticeship scheme

Skillset, the sector skills council for the creative industries, was awarded the scheme, which is expected to create up to 250 jobs for school leavers in IPA member agencies over the next three years.

Meetings with IPA member agencies will begin in January to develop the framework for up to four apprenticeship schemes for the advertising sector.

Each scheme will combine training for 18 year-olds with on-the-job work experience in media, digital, direct marketing and creative agencies from next September.

The new initiative is in direct response to the IPA’s Future of Talent Strategy, says Janet Hull, director of marketing at IPA.

“When almost a million 16 to 24 year-olds are out of work and when soaring university fees are discouraging even the brightest students are far from realising their full learning potential. The need for this apprenticeship scheme couldn’t be more apparent,” adds Hull.

The trade body’s support of the initiative is part of its president Nicola Mendelsohn’s strategy to attract new creative talent from different backgrounds to the industry.

Elsewhere, the Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCA) and Pearson in Practice, a division of the global publishing firm Pearson, have announced that they will be leading the development of the first Government-funded industry-wide PR apprenticeship scheme. Up to 600 apprenticeship roles will be created over a three-year period.

Both schemes follow the Government’s announcement of a £1bn youth jobs fund last month, as it looks to tackle rising unemployment levels in the UK.

NEWS BY:http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/sectors/agencies/government-funds-ad-apprenticeship-scheme/3032595.article

Business groups worried over 4G mobile broadband

The Federation of Small Businesses and the National Farmers Union (NFU) say the rollout is taking too long and won't cover enough of the UK.

They are worried hundreds of thousands of people, mainly in rural areas, could be left behind.

Ofcom says the project is moving as quickly as possible and that no final decision has been made about coverage.

Two 4G trials are being carried out in the UK.
Continue reading the main story

    Businesses in rural areas need broadband now. They [the government and Ofcom] need to move faster on this and be more ambitious

Andrew Cave Federation of Small Businesses

One is taking place in central London, run by O2, and another in north Cornwall, jointly run by Everything Everywhere and BT.

Twenty-five-year-old Hayley Gaffney is one of around 200 people taking part in the Cornwall trial.

Until she got the 4G broadband she was only getting speeds of just over 1Mbps.

"The internet was an absolute nightmare," she says. "It just kept crashing because it was so slow."

However, since joining the trial her broadband speed has jumped to more than 11Mbps.

"The internet really is amazing to what it was before," says Hayley.

"It was things like watching YouTube, uploading photos onto Facebook, just uploading the news feed on Facebook, getting my emails without getting them a few days later. Before it was so slow."
'More ambition'

Andrew Cave from the Federation of Small Businesses says those kinds of benefits are vital to roll out to every part of the UK, not just urban areas.

NEWS BY:http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/16038102

PM under pressure ahead of EU talks

London Mayor Boris Johnson urged the Prime Minister to call a referendum - or even wield his veto - on any EU-wide treaty that sets the 17 single currency states on the path to fiscal union.

And eurosceptic Cabinet minister Owen Paterson broke ranks to say that a referendum will be the "inevitable" result of moves to forge a closer bloc of eurozone states within the EU.

In the House of Commons, Mr Cameron faced demands from his own backbenchers to use tomorrow's summit to renegotiate the UK's EU membership or block eurozone fiscal union, which veteran Tory Sir Peter Tapsell warned would "pose a great threat to the whole of the liberty of Europe".

Conservative MP Andrew Rosindell urged the Prime Minister to show "bulldog spirit" in the talks between the 27 EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday and Friday.

Mr Cameron responded: "That is exactly what I will do. The British national interest absolutely means that we need to help resolve this crisis in the eurozone. It is freezing the British economy just as it is freezing economies right across Europe."

The Prime Minister insisted he will not sign a treaty unless it includes provisions to protect the City of London and the European single market. "We will insist on safeguards for Britain," he said. "That means making sure we are stronger and better able to do things in the UK to protect our national interests. The more the countries of the eurozone ask for, the more we will ask for in return."

But Downing Street made clear that he sees no argument for a referendum in the UK on the treaty changes needed to tighten economic governance in the eurozone.

NEWS BY:http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-24018569-pm-under-pressure-ahead-of-eu-talks.do

University offers 'golden ticket' scholarship worth up to £50,000

The challenge provides a fantastic opportunity to an exceptional student who can demonstrate the qualities we seek in our applicants and which we nurture in our students,” she said.

“At the same time this initiative will reinforce our position as one of the most sought after universities amongst some of the most talented students in the UK.”

But Dr Philip Dixon, director of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) in Wales, slammed the scheme as a “gimmick”.

He said: “While I think that the individual student who wins this process will be very fortunate, it is a very sad indication of the state in which our higher education system finds itself that gimmicks like this have to be offered by our universities.

“I wonder where this will end – will we see the universities of Wales offering buy-one-get-one-free degrees?”

To be in with a chance of winning, students must have accepted an offer to study at Cardiff next year before undertaking a series of challenges which will increase in difficulty between now and next spring.

The first series will take place online, while the final will bring the best students to Cardiff University for a live head-to-head challenge.

All finalists will earn a scholarship towards their undergraduate tuition fees.

The first stage of the “ultimate scholarship” competition will appear on the university’s Thrive website later this month.

NEWS BY:http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/12/06/university-offers-golden-ticket-scholarship-worth-up-to-50-000-91466-29900763/

Refinery rewarded with Integrated Agency of Year Title and trophy for Best B2B Campaign

Refinery’s result-driven marketing has been recognised in a leading industry awards scheme in which the agency took home two awards, Best Integrated Agency and Best B2B Marketing Strategy for its Magnet Trade Take Off Campaign.

Now in its third year, the MiAwards run by the Marketing Industry Network identify and highlight the very best in marketing, media and communications agencies, teams and individuals across the whole of the UK.

The judging panel was expanded this year to include clientside marketers as well as senior agency side professionals and an awards dinner took place in Manchester mid November.

At the start of the year, Refinery was listed as the 19th Most Awarded Agency outside of London by The Drum Magazine and, as the 2011 awards season draws to a close, these latest awards take Refinery’s trophy count this year to seven wins this year alone, plus nominations, including a Silver in the Roses Advertising awards,

two awards at Fresh – a silver and a bronze (both for advertising) and a B2B Marketing award; four nominations in the RAR awards, and agency nominations in the Drum Marketing and How Do awards; plus managing director Nigel Papworth was given an OSBA (Outstanding Social Behaviour Award) for his work for local charity Mothers Against Violence.

NEWS BY:http://www.creativeboom.co.uk/north-west/news/refinery-rewarded-with-integrated-agency-of-year-title-and-trophy-for-best-b2b-campaign/

Prime Minister's Questions: David Cameron v Ed Miliband

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of events in the House of Commons. We'll begin with Prime Minister's Questions and after that there'll be a statement from Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude on the public sector strike. Finally, there'll be a statement from Foreign Secretary William Hague on the withdrawal of British diplomatic staff from Iran.


1130:

Prime Minister's Questions takes place against the backdrop of the biggest public sector strike in decades. Workers and unions are angry at planned changes to their pensions, which will require them to work longer and contribute more. The government says the changes are unavoidable because we're all living longer.


1135:

As well as the strikes, the state of the UK economy is bound to come up during. Yesterday, Chancellor George Osborne said the government would respond to the latest gloomy predictions - growth downgraded to 0.9% for this year and 0.7% next year. He announced further spending cuts, as well as a number of measures he hopes will put a rocket under the economy.


NEWS BY:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-15960412

Five predictions for the future of higher education marketing

HEIs will become increasingly divergent and differentiated

As is the case in many markets, HEIs will start to become grouped, between:

• On the one hand, those who have, and are able to justify, a reputation of excellence, are broadly based academically and will continue to attract the most able students

• On the other, those who are, or will become, more niche; specialising with regard to subject areas, types of students, methods of delivery and even length of courses (Northampton, for example, has an interesting point of differentiation based around a social enterprise strategy)

It will be those universities that fall in the middle that will be in most danger of lack of saliency and, as a result, declining numbers and commercial viability. In our view, all HEIs need to think clearly about their proposition and how they can differentiate themselves, particularly those that do not currently have a strong rationale. Importantly, this should be addressed from the perspective of target audiences: an outside-in rather than inside-out approach.

Investment will increase significantly

An increase in investment in higher education marketing and communications, both regarding staffing and activity, is already evident – Exeter has recently announced a recruitment drive for new marketers, for example. We anticipate that this will become an upsurge in the coming years, as competition for students intensifies in the UK and internationally, and the pool of available students reduces with the onset of high annual fees.

NEWS BY:http://www.guardian.co.uk/higher-education-network/2011/nov/28/five-predictions-higher-education-marketing?newsfeed=true

The universities exploring alternatives to undergraduate dissertations

However, our belief is that there is also necessary room for creative honours and capstone projects. And if you take a look at the mini- and maxi- case studies on our website you will appreciate just how creative these are – not a second best but an appropriate addition or replacement for the conventional extended written piece. For example at Nottingham Trent, architecture and built environment final year students can either do the 10,000 word conventional dissertation plus a poster summary;

or a 5,000 word conference paper with supporting presentation that is delivered to peers and tutors; or a conceptual project with a 5,000 word critical justification. As well as written material they are required to produce illustrations or simulations.

At the University of Gloucestershire, broadcast journalism students undertake a double module that endeavours to consolidate theory and practice in one intensive Newsweek, where they operate a news organisation across the three media platforms of television, radio and online news

Or Sheffield Hallam, where humanities students gain experience from a work-based or work-related task completed over an academic year. Examples of the range of recent output include writing a handbook for volunteers working with dementia sufferers in residential homes; penning material for an in-house film magazine and managing external relations with a local arts cinema; or exercising the role of student union volunteering committee chair and publicity responsibilities.

NEWS BY:http://www.guardian.co.uk/higher-education-network/blog/2011/nov/23/creative-honours-alternative-dissertations?newsfeed=true

New lecture series spotlights higher education

Arizona State University is launching a new lecture series to highlight the importance of redefining the role of high education in society. At the direction of President Michael M. Crow, ASU has created the Frank Rhodes Lecture Series on the Creation of the Future: A Lecture Series for a New American University.

The lecture series aims to showcase the New American University vision and what the future might look like.

Impactful and transformational leaders and thinkers will be invited to share their thoughts with the ASU and wider community each semester. The inaugural lecturer will be Wendy Kopp, founder and CEO of Teach for America.

The series is named after Frank Rhodes, former President of Cornell University. Rhodes is considered one of the most important university presidents of the 20th century. His book “The Creation of The Future” played a key role in the creation of the New American University vision.

In the book, Rhodes underscores the importance of the university while also indicating the need for universities to evolve. Said Rhodes, “The distinctive feature of the new American university will still be its commitment to learning in its widest sense.”




NEW BY:http://asunews.asu.edu/20111123_rhodeslecture

Top UK education head slates TV shows like The X Factor for ‘bullying’ and ‘arrogance

One of the UK’s leading educationalists has criticised TV talent shows such the X Factor for "glamorising" bullying and arrogance.

Helen Wright hits out at not just the "banal and mind-numbing" nature of such shows which is "undesirable" - but also their "amorality".

The broadside came today (Monday) from Wright, head of leading girls' school, St Mary's Calne, in Wiltshire, voicing her fears in her role as the president of the Girls' Schools Association, at its annual conference in Bristol.

Sky News reports that Wright also raises concerns about the "easy celebrity" gained by reality TV stars, which can seem appealing to young people lacking a direction in their lives.
"In the X Factor, contestants are encouraged to be at each other's throats, seemingly more so this year than ever," she said.

"Qualities such as bullying and arrogance are glamorised and become synonyms for ambition and drive.

"Young people look up to these so-called stars that have themselves been catapulted into a spotlight which can be far too much for them."

Wrights believes that the explosion of reality TV shows and the culture they promote "strikes at the heart of the way we should be bringing our children up".

She also suggested that the fierce criticism contestants face from judges can promote the message "you can be mean and nasty and that's kind of OK".

In the X Factor, contestants are encouraged to be at each other's throats, seemingly more so this year than ever, she said. Qualities such as bullying and arrogance are glamorised and become synonyms for ambition and drive. 

NEWS BY:http://thedrum.co.uk/news/2011/11/21/top-uk-education-head-slates-tv-shows-%E2%80%98bullying%E2%80%99-and-%E2%80%98arrogance%E2%80%99

Report finds massive fraud at Dutch universities

When colleagues called the work of Dutch psychologist Diederik Stapel too good to be true, they meant it as a compliment. But a preliminary investigative report  released on 31 October gives literal meaning to the phrase, detailing years of data manipulation and blatant fabrication by the prominent Tilburg University researcher.

"We have some 30 papers in peer-reviewed journals where we are actually sure that they are fake, and there are more to come," says Pim Levelt, chair of the committee that investigated Stapel's work at the university.

Stapel's eye-catching studies on aspects of social behaviour such as power and stereo­typing garnered wide press coverage. For example, in a recent Science paper (which the investigation has not identified as fraudulent), Stapel reported that untidy environments encouraged discrimination.

NEWS BY:http://www.nature.com/news/2011/111101/full/479015a.html

The health care debate: popularity, probability, and facts

 Late last week, the Kaiser Family Foundation released a poll showing that Americans have little confidence in the landmark health care reform that President Obama signed into law last year. The Kaiser survey found that just 18 percent of respondents believed that the Affordable Care Act would improve their circumstances; 31 percent said they'd be worse off, while 44 replied that the Act wouldn't make much of a difference in their lives.

With these findings in view, it's certainly no shock that the Kaiser poll also discovered that a majority of Americans--51 percent--take an unfavorable view of the 2010 health-care overhaul, compared to just 34 percent who viewed the measure favorably. These numbers marked a new low in public support for the law, so the Kaiser survey garnered a great deal of media attention.

Political leaders and lawmakers of course do well to heed such trends, since the public's views shape both their own immediate career prospects and the likely course of modification to laws such as the Affordable Care Act. But our political process can also benefit greatly from heeding the findings of prediction markets in such cases.

These markets can help our political class handicap the probability of certain outcomes. (Of course, whether such outcomes match up in any way with either the public's will--or with the will of the majority of the public--is a separate question, which need not detain us here.)

One key prediction market,  Intrade, currently forecasts a 37 percent likelihood that the U.S. Supreme Court will rule the health care law's controversial individual mandate is unconstitutional by the end of 2012.

Under the individual mandate, all U.S. citizens are required to have health insurance; the idea behind it is to keep insurance costs down by eliminating what's known as adverse selection in the market for healthcare.

NEWS BY: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/health-care-debate-popularity-probability-facts-161344638.html

Inaugural AU doctorate presented

Lt. Col. Tadd Sholtis, deputy director of public affairs at Headquarters Air Combat Command at Langley Air Force Base, Va., accepted the Air University’s first doctorate degree conferred by a Maxwell-based institution.

AU’s Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, has been accredited since the mid-1960’s to confer Ph.D.s.

Sholtis served with Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, then commander, International Security Assistance Force and commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan, and used his experience to develop a dissertation addressing strategy as public discourse.

His doctor of philosophy in military strategy is the first approved by the Department of Education as part of a federal program.

The doctorate degree program is anchored by the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, allowing students to develop a dissertation while on active duty. This period of research and reflection is akin to a practicum or internship.

The official transcript date for the degree will be determined upon notification of Congress by the secretary of defense.

NEWS BY:http://www.maxwellgunterdispatch.com/article/20111118/DISPATCH01/111117022/Inaugural-AU-doctorate-presented

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NEWS BY:http://www.environmentalsciencearticles.org/life-science-articles/the-true-solution-to-uk-dissertation-writing.html

Ethical hacking course offered by Coventry University

Coventry University is to open an 'Ethical Hacking Lab', the latest UK institution to put money into developing the practical skills that have been in short supply during the cybercrime boom of the last decade.

Coventry's established Applied Research Group (ARG) in Digital Security and Forensics (SaFe), established in 2006, will receive an investment of £20,000 from the University backed up by a further £17,000 of equipment from local penetration testing company Nettitude.

This will result in a lab of 25 PCs with a server, firewall and intrusion detection system (IDS), together able to allow students to simulate attacks on systems in real time.

"Nettitude has also provided guest lectures, placement opportunities, technical expertise and support," said Coventry's senior lecturer in ethical hacking and network security, Brian Moore, underlining the public-private theme of the new facility.

"We can now forge ahead with modules in cloud security and both mobile device and network forensics. This is a very exciting and challenging time for Coventry University, and we hope to become known as the institution of choice in the UK for security and forensics," said Moore.

Coventry is only the latest UK University to embrace ethical hacking as a subject attractive to students. As long ago as 2006, Abertay University in Dundee became the first in the UK to offer a degree-level course in the subject. This year, Northumbria University became another institution to offer a degree course.

NEWS BY:http://www.macworld.co.uk/digitallifestyle/news/index.cfm?newsid=3315429&pagtype=allchandate

Laura's German essay wins top student award

ONE OF President Mary Mcaleese's final functions in the office she held for 14 years was to present a young Swords woman with a prestigious undergraduate award named after one of Ireland's greatest writers. Laura Sinnott from Swords, was named as one of the 23 winners of the Undergraduate Awards, an awards programme open to undergraduate students on the island of Ireland and, recently, the USA.

Laura was awarded the Oscar Wilde Gold Medal for academic excellence by President Mary Mcaleese, at the Undergraduate Awards Ceremony held at Dublin Castle recently. As the winner of the Undergraduate Awards Languages & Linguistics category, Laura was recognised for her essay entitled ' The audio-visual juxtaposition of Günter Grass' Die Blechtrommel'. Having studied German and History at Trinity College Dublin, Laura was also awarded a scholarship to attend the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Education, Arts and Culture after winning the annual essay competition organised by the Irish Austrian Society in Dublin.

In addition to this, the talent Swords student was awarded the 2011 Carr-jackson Prize by the Department of Germanic Studies at Trinity College Dublin for her undergraduate dissertation on Ingeborg Bachmann's Todesarten-zyklus. She is currently working in Vienna and hopes to do research in the area of Germanic Studies.

There were 2,381 submissions to the 2011 Undergraduate Awards programme, of which only 23 winners were selected. Founded in 2008 by two Trinity graduates, Oisin Hanrahan and Paddy Cosgrave, the Undergraduate Awards programme is open to students in their final or penultimate year on a degree course from every third level institution on the island of Ireland as well as a selection of top universities in the UK, Canada and the USA.

NEWS BY:http://www.fingal-independent.ie/local-notes/lauras-german-essay-wins-top-student-award-2929610.html

Fall convocation gateway to future for 4,400 U of T students

Acclaimed filmmaker Deepa Mehta is one of more than 4,400 extraordinary women and men – gold medal athletes, novelists and global researchers - receiving degrees from the University of Toronto this fall.

Mehta, who receives a Nov. 7 Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, in recognition of her leadership in the arts and her work as a director, producer and screenwriter, studied philosophy as an undergraduate. Higher education “broadens your horizon, helps you explore different areas of your potential interests, and buys you time to get to know yourself,” she said.

Mehta’s notion of taking the time to explore your interests resonates with many students who opted for fall convocation in order to seize opportunities to study abroad, take part in groundbreaking research, or combine challenging academics with exciting extra-curricular opportunities.

Undergraduate Opportunities

For Andi Wilson, 22, the road to fall convocation began with a 2009 summer exchange trip to China with Professor Joseph Wong, director of the Asia Institute at the Munk School of Global Affairs.

That experience sparked Wilson’s decision to enroll in a demanding fourth-year senior thesis class, postponing her convocation until fall.


NEWS BY:http://www.news.utoronto.ca/fall-convocation-gateway-future-4400-u-t-students

Ary’s absence slammed at Student Council

Students’ Union president Ary Sharif has been criticised at the first Student Council of the year for his decision to go on leave — while at the same time an undisclosed “serious” review of the union takes place.

Sharif was not present at the meeting, as he has taken his allowance of four weeks unpaid leave to finish his MA dissertation and will be returning on November 1st, but his absence did not go unquestioned.

Dan Derricott, who competed against Sharif in the SU elections, asked: “Do you think it’s appropriate that the president takes so much time off and is still taking photographs in clubs at night at a time when the union is going through quite a lot of change?”

Derricott also complained that Sharif appeared to prioritise his job as a photographer over SU president. He noted that students are not being represented at the highest levels of university meetings, the executive board and the board of governors, where his role cannot be covered by acting president Kayleigh Taylor. Many of Sharif’s other responsibilities have been shared between the other full time officers.

Former RAG officer Phil Krstic said: “It confuses me that he’s mixing being a student and being SU president and how that’s been intermingled. Surely if you’re the SU president that’s your job for the year?”

NEWS BY:http://thelinc.co.uk/2011/10/arys-absence-slammed-at-student-council/

Life sciences: Biomarkers on the brain

Niklas Mattsson had always been interested in cognition and the biology of how it goes awry. Attending medical school to become a neurologist seemed a no-brainer.

But after a year working in a neurology clinic, where many of his patients suffered from Alzheimer's disease, he found that medicine wasn't quite the right fit for him. “I enjoyed working with patients — it was very rewarding,” he says. “But it did not give me the opportunity to really focus on basic disease mechanisms.” Research on animal models or cellular processes also held little allure, because it would take him too far away from the clinic.

So in 2008, he embarked on a joint clinical and research residency in neurochemistry at Sahlgrenska University Hospital at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, where he found his niche in biomarker discovery. “Biomarkers are really in vivo measurements of the pathology of the disease, so it's an opportunity to investigate the disease mechanisms on a patient level,” he says. His dissertation research, which he hopes to defend in December, focuses on protein biomarkers in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

His work has moved quickly. In 2009, he was the first author on a multi-centre study of 1,500 subjects, which confirmed that levels of three CSF proteins could be used to identify people with Alzheimer's disease (N. Mattsson et al. J. Am. Med. Assoc. 302, 385–393; 2009); it was the largest-ever study of such biomarkers. “I think the area is a very fruitful one for young scientists,” says Mattsson.

NEWS BY:http://www.nature.com/naturejobs/2011/111103/full/nj7371-139a.html

After MBA-fees victory, McGill moves on

I can’t think of a major program in Canada that isn’t calling itself ‘integrated’ and ‘international.’ So why is this so unique?

Most programs will assert some degree of an integrated approach and some focus on international. But at McGill, at the core of what we teach, is an integrated model that is team-taught and has thrown away all the individual functional courses – no more accounting, no more finance, no more marketing courses.

Instead we teach a set of modules – for example, one around global leadership and another around managing resources, which combines human resources, information technology and finance. Another is around value creation, which combines marketing and operations. We put the models together at the front and say ‘This is how a business works. We’re going to get you to think big picture right from the beginning before you start to specialize and drill down.’

So can you get accounting?

You will learn accounting going through that [module]. We also have a base camp at the very start, where we actually do some fundamentals in accounting, math for finance, and statistics, to make sure they are up to speed on some basics.

MBA classes from the 1960s and 1970s were often young people from poor backgrounds. What happens to accessibility when you need tens of thousands of dollars of annual tuition?

I understand the sentiment, but in our own program, an MBA student is quite different than 20, 30 or 40 years ago. They all have work experience, and coming in they have an average salary of about $50,000 a year. They’ve been off working an average of about five years.




NEWS BY:http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/business-education/after-mba-fees-victory-mcgill-moves-on/article2222627/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=Home&utm_content=2222627

Report finds massive fraud at Dutch universities

When colleagues called the work of Dutch psychologist Diederik Stapel too good to be true, they meant it as a compliment. But a preliminary investigative report  released on 31 October gives literal meaning to the phrase, detailing years of data manipulation and blatant fabrication by the prominent Tilburg University researcher.
"We have some 30 papers in peer-reviewed journals where we are actually sure that they are fake, and there are more to come," says Pim Levelt, chair of the committee that investigated Stapel's work at the university.
Stapel's eye-catching studies on aspects of social behaviour such as power and stereo­typing garnered wide press coverage. For example, in a recent Science paper (which the investigation has not identified as fraudulent), Stapel reported that untidy environments encouraged discrimination .

"Somebody used the word 'wunderkind'," says Miles Hewstone, a social psychologist at the University of Oxford, UK. "He was one of the bright thrusting young stars of Dutch social psychology — highly published, highly cited, prize-winning, worked with lots of people, and very well thought of in the field."
In early September, however, Stapel was suspended from his position as dean of the Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences over suspicions of research fraud. In late August, three young researchers under Stapel's supervision had found irregularities in published data and notified the head of the social-psychology department, Marcel Zeelenberg. Levelt's committee joined up with sister committees at the universities of Groningen and Amsterdam, where Stapel has also worked, to produce the report. They are now combing through his publications and their supporting data, and interviewing collaborators, to map out the full extent of the misconduct.


NEWS BY:http://www.nature.com/news/2011/111101/full/479015a.html

Cathedral venue for IBS ceremony

A graduation ceremony has been held for 70 local students who have completed their studies at the International Business School.

Hundreds of guests, including academic staff, VIPs, supporters of the IBS and relatives gathered at St German's Cathedral in Peel for the event.

The congregation was addressed by acting director of the IBS Dr Jacqueline Yates, and Professor Paul Joyce from Liverpool John Moores University admitted the students to their degrees and diplomas.

Qualifications were awarded in six business disciplines, including an honours degree and a post-graduate diploma, both in business administration.

Qualifications from the Chartered Institutes of Marketing and Personnel and Development were gained.

This year's outstanding student was Christa Worth who received the Deloitte prize for Best Overall Undergraduate Student and the Britannia International Prize for Exceptional Performance for an Dissertation.

The graduation ceremony was held on Friday. 

NEWS BY:http://www.manxradio.com/newsread.aspx?id=55823

Receptionists 'key' to safe repeat prescription process

GP receptionists play a "hidden" role in ensuring patients get the correct treatments when they need them, says a study in the British Medical Journal.

Researchers from Queen Mary, University of London, analysed how four UK surgeries organised repeat prescriptions.

They found that receptionists used their knowledge and experience to make a computer-based process run safely.

Training should not just focus on technology, says the study.

Repeat prescriptions are defined as prescriptions issued without a consultation between the GP and patient.

They account for up to three-quarters of all drugs prescribed and four-fifths of drug costs in UK general practice. Around half of all registered patients receive treatment by repeat prescription and rates are rising, the authors of the study say.

With electronic records and computer systems in most GP practices, patients assume that issuing these prescriptions is a simple, automated process.

But this study, in which researchers spent 395 hours directly observing the work of receptionists and other administrative staff, found repeat prescribing to be a complex, technology-supported social practice, requiring collaboration between clinicians and administrative staff.

NEWS BY:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-15572990

UK and China embark on education partnership

“This new action plan will help us build a range of sustainable partnerships between our nations’ universities.

“This will involve a number of exciting new programmes that aim to increase the mobility of students, teachers and practitioners between our countries, including a work placement pilot and an enhanced ‘Study in China’ programme commencing in 2012.“

Minister for Skills John Hayes talking about the Vocational Education strand of the action plan said:

This is an exciting opportunity to explore new ways of collaborating between industry and education institutions. We’re looking forward to discovering possible approaches to piloting a UK apprenticeship programme in China during 2012.”

The Summit will be chaired by the Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove with the Minister for Universities and Science David Willets opening a Higher Education Roundtable attended by a number of UK University Vice-Chancellors.

The action plan that will be agreed at today’s summit will take forward the education framework agreement signed in November last year by Michael Gove and China’s Minister for Education Yuan Guiren.

In addition to the action plan, a number of universities are expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), further strengthening the links with China.


NEWS BY:http://www.investinuk.net/news/uk-and-china-embark-education-partnership-45d8

Celebrate Writing: Why I Write

The U.S. Senate has proclaimed today the third annual National Day on Writing, an event originally created by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) to promote the importance of writing — not just to those of us who make our living by writing, but to all of us in our everyday lives.

This year, the National Writing Project has joined in the celebration, along with numerous other educational blogs and news outlets, asking people to share the reasons why they write. You can follow along the #whyiwrite hashtag on Twitter, and you’re encouraged to contribute your own essays, tweets, and blog posts.

Here’s Audrey’s contribution:

As someone who writes daily — and writes a lot — I’m often asked about the “how” not the “why” of my work. Namely, “How do you write so much?” The question makes me chuckle because I distinctly remember being a PhD student working on a dissertation and having these overwhelming, fearful feelings: How will I ever write enough? Are my ideas any good? What if I fail? What if I have nothing important to say?

I think there’s something about staring at the blank word processing screen that elicits these feelings in almost all writers. Unlike standing in front of a class full of students or a room full of co-workers — who nod (and true, nod off) and smile (or sleep) and ask questions (or stare silently) — the blank page can be strangely more intimidating. There isn’t the immediacy or the feedback when you write like there is when you speak.

NEWS BY:http://mindshift.kqed.org/2011/10/celebrate-writing-why-i-write/

New director has a history with Cayman’s National Museum

Cayman Islands residents may not immediately recognise the name Margaret E. Leshikar-Denton, but just about everybody has heard of the Wreck of the Ten Sail. Ms Leshikar-Denton, better known as Peggy, is the woman who spent three years researching the true facts of that historic event, and helped Cayman’s National Museum build an exhibit featuring it. She also served as guest editor for a book about it. 

That work alone is more than sufficient reason for people to welcome her as the museum’s new director. 

Her first day in the post was 3 October, but her connection with the museum goes back 
25 years. 

She first came to the Cayman Islands in 1980, when a team from the Institute of Nautical Archaeology (based at Texas A&M University) was invited by government to survey the Islands’ waters for shipwrecks. In 1986, she accepted a full-time position at the museum and moved permanently to the Cayman Islands.

One of the best-known events in Cayman’s history is the Wreck of the Ten Sails, and perhaps no other episode in Cayman’s past has been the focus of so much legend, the late Philip Pedley said 
in 1994. 

As the first director of the National Archive, he wrote the preface to a book jointly published by the National Archive and Cayman Free Press.

The book was “Our Islands’ Past, Volume II” and it was based on the dissertation Ms Leshikar-Denton submitted for her doctorate in anthropology (nautical archaeology). 

Her title was “The 1794 Wreck of the Ten Sail, Cayman Islands, British West Indies: A Historical Study and Archaeological Survey”.


NEWS BY:http://www.compasscayman.com/caycompass/2011/10/14/New-director-has-a-history-with-Cayman-s-National-Museum/

Campbellsville University named to 'America's Best Christian Colleges'

CAMPBELLSVILLE, KY (10/28/2011)(readMedia)-- The 15th annual report of America's Best Christian Colleges® by the Institutional Research & Evaluation Inc. has included Campbellsville University for 2011.

This is the fifth consecutive year for the honor.

John Chowning, vice president for church and external relations and executive assistant to the president at Campbellsville University, said Campbellsville University's growing national reputation has been further verified by being named as one of America's Best Christian Colleges®.

Chowning said, "To achieve the honor of being named among America's Best Christian Colleges® there are four main qualities an institution must have. First, an institution must be an accredited, four-year institution offering bachelor degrees.

Secondly, an institution must offer full residential facilities including residence halls and dining services.

NEWS BY:http://readme.readmedia.com/Campbellsville-University-named-to-Americas-Best-Christian-Colleges/3082364

LIM hosts webinar on Internet-based ministry

In the spirit of the old adage, “If you can’t beat them, join them,” Loyola University New Orleans Institute for Ministry is offering an online discussion titled, “Proclaiming the Good News in a Digital Age:

Exploring Internet-Mediated Communication for Ministry.” The free webinar will begin on Tuesday, Oct. 25 at 8 p.m. Viewers can access the presentation by clicking here at 8 p.m., at which time the link will come active.

The webinar, presented by Loyola assistant professor of liturgy, catechesis and evangelization Daniella Zsupan-Jerome, Ph.D., explores the essential question of communicating faith in our increasingly digital culture.

Zsupan-Jerome believes that practical resources for media or digital ministry are very accessible, but in exploring Internet-mediated communication for ministry, we face a more fundamental question.

What is the theological foundation for engaging in ministry in the digital realm? How might we articulate a solid theological foundation for ministry that serves us for proclaiming the good news in a digital age?

Zsupan-Jerome has done extensive research on the broad use of media in Christian tradition for communicating faith.

Her doctoral dissertation is titled, “Digital Media at the Service of the Word: What Does Internet-Mediated Communication Offer the Theology of Revelation and the Practice of Catechesis?”

NEWS BY:http://www.loyno.edu/news/story/2011/10/24/2641

Clarkstown School Board Hires Special Education Evaluato

More than 100 people crowded into the school board’s meeting room and into an overflow room to watch on screen and hear a presentation by a special education evaluator on Tuesday night.  After the almost two-hour-long explanation and question-and-answer- session, the board voted unanimously to hire Dr. Ann Monroe-Baillargeon to study and evaluate Clarkstown’s special education programs for $15,000.

The details of her contract will be worked out between the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA), the district and Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon, who is an education professor at SUNY Alfred University.  After being recommended to the district by NYSSBA, the professor originally presented to the board last November 1.

During her presentation via Skype, Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon outlined what the scope of her project could be. 

    * Look at and study the history and current status of special education in the district, kindergarten through 12th grade.
    * Meet with an administrative team.
    * Conduct a sampling of special education teachers through individual or small group interviews to gain their perspectives of the program.
    * Create and distribute an anonymous survey/s to stakeholders: parents, teachers, and administrators.
    * Conduct a sampling of IEPs across all categories.
    * Look at the progression of special education services provided to students
    * Prepare a report for stakeholders with best practices recommendations.

“My purpose is to provide you an overview of what I see happening in the district,” said Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon, adding she would suggest ways to improve the program for students with special needs.

Board member Donna Ehrenberg asked if the study would go beyond students with special needs because of concerns about poor reading skills in the district.  Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon replied she would look at special needs students and what led to their IEP.

“We can certainly look beyond those currently identified as special needs,” she said, adding the parameters of her work would be specified in the contract.

In response to a question about best practices, Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon said research shows one best practice is differentiating instruction in the classroom according to the needs and abilities of the students.  Another example is presenting information to students in various ways: visual, audio and other formats.

Board President Doug Katz questioned how long the evaluation would take.

“The contract that is being proposed is nine billable days,” said Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon.  “We have not worked out a contract.”

The nine billable workdays would probably be spread across three months because Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon is a faculty member at the university.  She explained the workdays would be a combination of actual visits to Clarkstown to meet with stakeholders directly, and preparation, collection and analysis of data, which would be done off site. 

She re-stated her first phase would include data collection and analysis, interpretation of the data and data presentation in person and written form.  A potential separate second phase could be assistance with implementation of the recommendations.

About 10 people asked questions ranging from how to ensure all parents of special education students would have access to the survey to where else she has worked as an expert.  Dr. Monroe-Baillargeon said Clarkstown would tell her the best way to distribute the survey to parents whether by email, mail or access through the district website.  She said other districts, including a BOCES consortium with 20 districts, have hired her for Phase One work only.  

Another parent inquired if she would look at students placed out of the district.

“I’m not studying BOCES,” she said.  “I’m studying Clarkstown.  I would look at why students were unable to be served in the district.”

Prior to casting his vote, Board Member Philip DeGaetano said, “I’m going to be one of the parents filling out that survey.  I’m satisfied (with) what happened here tonight.”

Parent Robert Kurkela wanted to know how soon the evaluation could begin and when it would be completed.

“A reasonable timeline would be February 2012 to get a final report,” she said. “It isn’t an overnight turnaround.”

She explained it takes time to study the district’s programs, takes time for people to understand and time to implement recommendations for change.  She said her job is to help the district improve.

“It’s not my job to fix it,” she said. “A district needs to understand itself which I am going to help you do.”

After the meeting, Superintendent Margaret Keller-Cogan said "I'm delighted that we're finally going to get the critical analysis of students with special needs." 

NEWS BY:http://newcity.patch.com/articles/clarkstown-school-board-hires-special-education-evaluator

Vom Spielzeug zum 3-D-Scanner

Eine neue Software macht aus Microsofts Bewegungssteuerung Kinect ein Gerät, das Objekte dreidimensional erfassen kann. Die Anwendungsmöglichkeiten sind groß.

Microsofts Kinect-Sensor, mit dem Spieler Xbox-360-Games mit ihren Körperbewegungen steuern können, wird von Bastlern wie Forschern seit Verkaufsstart im November 2010 für zahlreiche weitere Anwendungen verwendet. Das kostengünstige Modul dient zur Bilderkennung für Roboter, automatisiert Beleuchtungssysteme oder hilft gar Rollstuhlfahrern im Supermarkt.

Doch all das wirkt wie Kinderspielzeug, wenn man es mit dem Forschungsprojekt KinectFusion vergleicht, das derzeit bei Microsoft Research in Großbritannien entwickelt wird. Mit der auf Kinect aufsetzenden Software soll es Nutzern möglich werden, qualitativ hochwertige 3-D-Modelle in Echtzeit zu generieren. Und das ist noch nicht alles:

Eine integrierte Physik-Engine erlaubt es anschließend, eingescannte Objekte realistisch zu manipulieren.

Die Technik kann Objekte, Personen oder ganze Räume dreidimensional erfassen – und das zu einem unschlagbaren Preis.

Die Möglichkeiten scheinen dabei grenzenlos: Vom lebensechten Avatar über Objekte, die sich in virtuelle Umgebungen und Spiele importieren lassen, ist alles denkbar.

"KinectFusion ist eine Plattform, die es uns erlauben wird, die Art, wie Computer die Welt sehen, neu zu denken", meint Projektleiter Shahram Izadi. "Wir haben bereits erste Anwendungsmöglichkeiten vorgeschlagen, erwarten aber, dass die Nutzer ganz neue Ideen entwickeln werden." 3-D-Scanner existierten zwar seit längerem auf dem Markt, doch keiner sei so einfach zu nutzen wie KinectFusion.

Zudem kosteten selbst Heimversionen mindestens 3000 Dollar. Izadis Kollege Steve Hodges rechnet damit, dass es zu einer Demokratisierung der Technik kommen könnte. "Jeder kann künftig 3-D-Inhalte schaffen, man nimmt sich nur seinen Kinect-Sensor und scannt."

Noch sind die genauen Details, wie KinectFusion konkret funktioniert, allerdings nicht offengelegt. Erste Demonstrationen sorgten in der Szene jedoch für Begeisterung. Genaueres will Microsoft Research im Oktober auf dem UIST Symposium in Santa Barbara sowie auf der ISMAR 2011 in Basel erläutern – zu beiden Fachtagungen sind Paper angekündigt.

Der Kinect-Sensor projiziert für den Menschen unsichtbare Laser-Punktmuster in einen Raum und nutzt dann eine eingebaute Infrarotkamera, um Verzerrungen in diesem Feld zu ermitteln. Die so entstehende Punktwolke mit Entfernungswerten zur Kamera setzt der Kinect-Algorithmus dann ein, um Objekte und Gesten in Echtzeit zu erkennen und zu identifizieren. "Structured light depth sensing" nennt sich diese Technik.




NEWS BY:http://www.heise.de/tr/artikel/Vom-Spielzeug-zum-3-D-Scanner-1353197.html

Merged University of Wales chief hails 'new beginning'

The University of Wales (UoW) says its merger with two colleges is the "start of a new beginning" for the scandal-hit institution.

The 120-year old university is in effect being abolished after BBC Wales' investigations raised questions about its scrutiny of partner colleges.

Vice-chancellor Medwin Hughes said the new organisation was a "strong brand" that ensured UoW's name would continue.

UoW council chairman Hugh Thomas resigned after the merger decision.

Visa scandal

The institution's future had come into question following Welsh government proposals to rationalise higher education.

A merger with Trinity St David in Carmarthen and Lampeter, and Swansea Metropolitan University, was proposed as the way forward.

But a scandal uncovered by BBC Wales involving an alleged visa scam centred on a partner college in London offering UoW validated degrees confounded the plan.

Prof Medwin Hughes, said the three institutions would now be "recreated" under a new brand.

The new vice-chancellor told BBC Radio Wales: "We have secured yesterday that the Wales name will continue within the context of higher education.

'Decent burial'

"Wales needs strong brands. You don't throw away a name - Wales. You don't throw away the name of the university of Wales. Clearly it has to change. Every university has to change."

Prof Hughes said students in the UK and beyond would still be able to finish a University of Wales degree.

Once the merger has taken place, new degrees would bear the name of the three universities, he said.

Following the scandal revelations, education minister Leighton Andrews said UoW had "let Wales down" and "probably requires a decent burial", and called for Mr Thomas to quit.

Last year BBC Wales revealed that a pop star with bogus degrees was running a University of Wales partner college in Malaysia.

It led to a damning report from the higher education watchdog, the QAA, which found serious shortcomings in the way UoW approved other colleges to teach and design courses for its degrees.

Announcing his resignation on Friday, Mr Thomas said the "historic decision" taken by the governing body for merger had led him "to assess what in leadership terms was in the best interests of the transformed university".

A Welsh government spokesperson welcomed the resignation as the "right decision in light of recent events".

"The University of Wales has played an important part in the history of Wales. It's important that any successor institution builds upon that history," they added.

Conservative education spokeswoman Angela Burns AM said: "It is now crucial that lessons are learned and that Welsh higher education regains its credibility".
'Controversy after controversy'

Dr Peter Noyes, vice chancellor of University of Wales, Newport, said the merger "should not detract from a distinguished history lasting 12 decades".

"Wales should be sad that this day has come but those who have played a part in the institution's history, whether graduates, academics or others should look back with fondness on this national institution," he said.

"We are heading towards a future with a transformed higher education sector in Wales and it had become clear that the University of Wales was unable to play a part in that future."

Luke Young, president of National Union of Students (NUS) Wales said: "This was the right decision for the University of Wales to take.

"After the last few weeks where we have seen controversy after controversy, it did become quite clear that the status quo just really wasn't acceptable."

He said merging with Trinity St David and Swansea Metropolitan University was a "better evolutionary process than simply scrapping the brand altogether".


NEWS BY:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-15411496

Bahrain poised for human rights report

After eight months of clashes that have claimed close to 40 lives, the Gulf kingdom of Bahrain is bracing itself for the findings of a major investigation into alleged human rights abuses, including torture.

The Bahrain Independent Commission of Enquiry (BICI) has heard more than 8,800 complaints and conducted more than 5,700 interviews. Composed of five members from outside Bahrain, it will be announcing its findings on 30 October and the government has promised a swift response.

But will the commission probe deep enough, will its recommendations be acted on, and will it help cure the worsening sectarian divisions on this once peaceful island state?

Ask almost any question about Bahrain's failed uprising this year and you are likely to get two widely differing responses, according to who you speak to.

Go into any one of the low-rise Shia villages west of the capital, Manama, and people will tell you this was a people's protest brutally suppressed by a regime they loathe.

You will hear stories of balaclava-clad security men smashing their way into private homes earlier this year, dragging suspected political activists from their beds, beating them in front of their families then dragging them off for interrogation in an undisclosed police station.

But talk to some of the hundreds of thousands of Sunnis and expatriate workers here and you hear a very different story.

Bahrain's uprising, they say, was a failed coup encouraged by Iran, a bid to end two centuries of Sunni monarchy and replace it with a theocratic Shia Islamic republic leaning towards Tehran.
Peace at a price

It is a fact often overlooked by the international media that while almost everyone welcomes reforms, a very sizable proportion of Bahrain's population do not want to replace their rulers.

But the peace and calm that now prevails on most of Bahrain's streets has come at a price. Hundreds of people were arrested and often held without their families knowing where they were. Five people have died in police custody, some believed tortured to death.

The international outcry over alleged human rights abuses has severely damaged Bahrain's name, prompting King Hamad Bin Issa al-Khalifa to order the investigation that is now poised to publish its findings.

Such is the depth of mistrust between the Sunni and Shia communities that many Shia fear the commission will be soft on the government, excusing it of any systematic abuse, or else equating any abuses committed by the security forces with actions committed by protesters.

The Bahraini government does not deny there have been abuses but its Minister for Human Rights, Fatima Al-Balouchi, said fault lay on both sides.

"There were abuses of human rights, those are mistakes, the government addressed them. Those mistakes were not just done by the government," she said.

"The abuses happened from everyone but were they systematic? Were they gross? No, they were not." 

NEWS BY:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15358707

Taipei councilors pan Universiade bid

The DPP councilors said hosting the events would stretch the city’s finances and could leave a financial mess for Mayor Hau Lung-bin’s successor

The Taipei City Government’s efforts to host the Universiade in 2017 and the 2019 Asian Games are blatant attempts to boost Mayor Hau Lung-bin’s (郝龍斌) image and could lead to huge deficits,

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City councilors said yesterday.

After hosting the Deaflympics and the Taipei International Flora Exposition, Taipei City Government is prepared to invest another NT$37.5 billion (US$1.2 billion) to host the 2017 Universiade and NT$59 billion for the Asian Games, the councilors said, adding that the city government should hold a referendum on whether to host the events.

Hau said that like the Flora Expo, the two events would “let the world see Taipei” and were part of efforts to promote the city worldwide.

The athletes’ village for the Universiade could even be converted into city-run residential buildings, Hau said.

DPP City Councilor Wu Su-yao (吳思瑤) said the government’s financial capabilities should be taken into account when deciding whether to host the events.

The Deaflympics cost NT$5 billion and the International Flora Expo another NT$14 billion, Wu said, adding that both events caused some budget problems.

Seventy-two percent of Taipei’s secondary reserve funds were injected into the flora expo and the public had no say on how the money was spent,

Wu said, adding that the investment in the Universiade and the Asian Games would account for more than half of Taipei’s NT$180 billion annual budget.

“It’s an astronomical figure,” Wu said, adding that such amount would be sufficient to build another Wenhu MRT line.

DPP City Councilor Lee Ching-feng (李慶鋒) said the Hau administration was using international events as a panacea.

Such decisions could leave a financial mess for Hau’s successor and risk sacrificing the general development of the city, Lee said, adding that the city council was not notified of the decisions and residents had no idea of how the funds were being spent.

“It’s like advancing a check with the people’s hard-earned money,” Lee said.

Taipei would have to spend close to NT$31.4 billion on facilities, such as an athletes’ village, Lee said, adding that the Hau administration’s listing of the controversial Taipei Dome as the location for the Universiade’s opening ceremony was a blatant use of the event to hand out favors to corporations “against the will of the people.”

NEWZ BY:http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2011/10/18/2003516060

Why boys trail further behind girls at GCSE top grades

Girls have opened up the biggest achievement gap over their male classmates in the top grades at GCSE since the A* was introduced.

Some 19.8% of boys entries were awarded an A* or an A this year compared with 26.5% of girls entries - a gap of 6.7 percentage points.

But education experts are warning against reading too much into the figures.

The achievement gap between boys and girls A* to C grades has also widened on last year but narrowed in last week's A-level results.

Head teachers' leader Brian Lightman says: "Over time the girls improve and the boys improve, and the girls improve a bit more quickly, but it's not a question that anyone is failing."

But the Association of School and College Leaders head adds that girls at GCSE age are more mature and more able to see the longer-term consequences of hard work than boys, who respond better to having short-term goals.

Ian Toone, senior professional officer with the Voice teaching union, points out that this year sees the first set of results of the new-style GCSEs, which are broken down into separate units.

"Although this could help boys, as it means that they can cram for exams in short bursts, in practice it means that pupils need to perform consistently well throughout the whole two years of a GCSE course, and this kind of assiduous diligence is something at which girls tend to excel far more than boys."

He adds that GCSEs are achievement tests rather than measures of innate intelligence and thus favour pupils who apply themselves "in a dedicated and industrious manner".

"This is a trait which is more typical of girls than boys - who are more easily distracted and prefer to focus on one thing at a time," he claims.

But he acknowledges that there are other societal factors at play from early childhood.

"Boys are encouraged to be more active from an early age, whereas the restless movements of baby girls are pacified.

"Hence, girls develop the skill of sitting still for longer periods of time, which is useful for academic pursuits like studying for GCSEs."
'Peer pressure'

This is often evident right from when children start school, with girls tending to be more ready to sit down and concentrate on reading or writing than some boys.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb believes ensuring boys can read well in the early years is the answer.

"The gap often begins in primary schools, with poor reading skills a barrier. We need to intervene early on to make sure that boys can read well, and all the evidence from around the world shows that the systematic teaching of synthetic phonics is the best way to teach basic literacy skills," he says.

But Mr Toone adds: "Boys tend to cluster together in larger groups than girls and so are more likely to be influenced by peer pressure and to develop a gang mentality, which can militate against GCSE success.

"GCSEs require a degree of solo work and are not viewed as 'cool' in a laddish culture."

The former head of education at the National Union of Teachers, John Bangs, acknowledges that in most schools there are likely to be groups of boys who act out in an attention-seeking way.

"If there is a group of boys in a school who are completely off the wall, they have to be targeted for intervention.

"I remember going to a school in Greenwich where they were providing clubs during the lunch time specifically for boys and also specifically for girls. The really good schools are already doing this."

Brian Lynch, assistant head teacher of Bethnal Green Technology College in east London, says his school has introduced intervention strategies that have been really effective in improving the results of both boys and girls.

This year boys increased their A* to Cs grades from 50% to 77% at the school. For girls the rise was from 79% to 82%.

Interventions include traditional methods such as close monitoring and streaming students in ability groups, but also encouraging thinking and leadership skills while working with community groups.

"It's really striving to develop their skills as leaders and giving them opportunities to express themselves," he says.

Mr Lightman says both girls and boys can respond very well to moves that make them feel a real sense of belonging and ownership in a school.

"It's about them being able to shape their own learning."

However, he warns: "Boys can be more susceptible to becoming demoralised by all the difficulties out there at the moment such as the socio-economic circumstances and all the difficulties about getting into university.

"They seem to be less resilient than perhaps some girls who can look to the long term."

Mr Bangs argues that gender gap will not close in our schools without resources continuing to be being targeted at the biggest underachieving groups - white working class boys and African-Caribbean boys.

He adds: "Schools should be looking at what they're teaching children to ensure that they engage boys as much as girls."

NEWS BY:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-14664916

Turnbull decries war on climate science

Opposition frontbencher Malcolm Turnbull has hit out against climate change sceptics on his side of politics, saying there has been a "war on science" that contradicts common sense.

He also warned the Liberal Party against veering too much to the right, using his popularity as a moderate in the New South Wales seat of Wentworth as an example of wresting votes from Labor.

Asked at the National Press Club if Coalition members such as Barnaby Joyce who hold extreme views on climate have fuelled a war on science, Mr Turnbull said: "You've got to take the science seriously - and I do."

Saying that "it's no easy matter for scientific research to be peer-reviewed and published", he described accepting the science as "common sense".

"I do think there has been a war on science to some extent, an attack on climate scientists. Ignoring what the CSIRO says and ignoring what leading scientists say and discounting it all is silly."

He likened climate change denial to "ignoring your doctor's advice on the basis that someone down the pub told you his uncle Ernie lived to 95 and smoked a packet of cork-tipped cigarettes every day and drank a bottle of whisky".

Late yesterday, Mr Turnbull denied on Twitter that he had been aiming his remarks at anyone from the Coalition.

"What utter rubbish. I made no criticism of any of my colleagues. The ABC may wish that I had, but I did not," he tweeted.

Mr Turnbull angered Coalition members last week when he delivered a blistering speech in favour of climate science which brought a measured reprimand from Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.

''Malcolm puts things in his own way and he's entitled to do that, but Malcolm strongly supports the Coalition's direct action policy,'' Mr Abbott said at the time.

Mr Turnbull did not retreat yesterday from the speech in which he contradicted Mr Abbott's claim that the Chinese release "500 times" the amount of carbon into the atmosphere than Australia.

"I gave a speech about this last week, some of you may have noticed, about the importance of taking the science seriously - and that is of course the Coalition's policy."

Mr Turnbull criticised the tone of the climate debate, saying "the civility of political discourse should be taken seriously".

"If our political discourse becomes abusive, and you see a lot of that on the internet I'm afraid, that debases the debate and undermines our capacity to assess arguments whether they are scientific arguments or indeed economic arguments on their merits."
NBN alternative

Mr Turnbull's address to the Press Club focused on the Opposition's alternative to the National Broadband Network (NBN).

He says the New Zealand government is building an ultra-fast broadband connection for 75 per cent of New Zealanders at a cost of around $480 million.

"That is about $500 a household. Compare that to the extraordinary expense we have in Australia," he said.

Mr Turnbull outlined the Coalition's broadband plan, which would use existing optical fibre and coaxial cable.

The Opposition would then invite private companies to deliver NBN-comparable broadband services to suburban and regional Australia.

"Telstra obviously would be in a prime position to tender for much or all of this role, but in order to do so it would need to separate its customer access network," Mr Turnbull said.

Telstra is already providing up to 100 mbps in Melbourne, he added.

"It could do so elsewhere if Telstra is provided with the certainty required to make the modest investment needed," he said.

Mr Turnbull said for regional areas, where such services would not be commercially viable, the Coalition would co-invest with companies and/or provide capital subsidies.
Broad church

As perhaps the best-known moderate in the Liberal Party, Mr Turnbull said fellow moderates Mal Washer and Judi Moylan - who retire at the next election - "will be missed".

He said the Liberal Party was a "broad church and must remain a broad church" retaining liberalism as well as conservatism.

"You win elections by persuading people who didn't vote for you at the last election to vote for you. Elections are always won at the centre," he said.

"The way you win elections is to get people who normally vote for the other side to vote for you."

Mr Turnbull used his victory in Wentworth at the 2007 election - when his was the only Liberal seat in Australia to record a swing to the party - a result he credited to his stance as a moderate.

"There is no doubt there are quite a few people in my seat who, in another electorate, would not vote Liberal. I don't regard that as a defect, I regard that as a strength, a political strength," he said.

"If you say there are a lot of Labor voters like Malcolm Turnbull then that's good because that means I'm more likely to hold my seat or increase my majority than I would if the case were otherwise."

NEWS BY:http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-03/turnbull-decries-war-on-climate-science/2823216?section=business