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Are Classroom Internet Use and Academic Performance Higher after Government Broadband Subsidies to Primary Schools?
Get PDFThis paper combines data from a government programme providing broadband access to primary schools in Ireland with anonymised survey microdata on schools’, teachers’ and pupils use of the internet to examine the links between public subsidies, classroom use of the internet and educational performance. The microdata are drawn from the 9-year-old cohort of the Growing Up in Ireland Study. We estimate regression models to identify the factors associated with internet use in the classroom and students’ scores on standardised reading and mathematics tests, and we check whether internet use is endogenous in the test score models. We find that provision of broadband service under the government scheme is associated with more than a doubling of teachers’ use of the internet in class after about a two year lag. Better computing facilities in schools are also associated with higher internet use, but advertised download speed is not statistically significant. Internet use in class is associated with significantly higher average mathematics and reading scores on standardised tests. A set of confounding factors is included, with results broadly in line with previous literature
PSA I love You: Prostate Cancer Screening in Ireland
Get PDFIreland has the second highest rate of prostate cancer (PCa) in Europe and this is largely due to the increased use of PSA testing in Ireland in recent years. Rapid Access Prostate Cancer Clinics (RAPC) were introduced in 2009, in order to increase the organisation and efficiency of PCa diagnosis in Ireland.
The use of PSA as a screening tool is controversial. At present, there is no evidence for the introduction of widespread, population-based screening for PCa. Two large randomised studies which evaluated the efficacy of PSA testing are examined in this review. These are the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial (PLCO) and The European Randomised Study for Prostate Cancer (ERSPC). These studies demonstrated conflicting results. The PLCO reported that there was no evidence that PSA screening reduced PCa-related mortality, while the ERSPC showed PSA screening was associated with a 21% decrease in PCa related mortality.
Following the publication of these trials, the European Association of Urology and the American Urology Association produced new PCa screening guidelines. These guidelines advised against widespread screening programmes but recommended PSA testing in men who met certain criteria (based on age, life expectancy and other risk factors). In Ireland, there are currently very little national guidelines in relation to PCa screening. However, much opportunistic testing occurs and patients often request PSA tests in a GP setting. National guidelines for PSA screening, which are in line with the AUA (American Urology Association) and EAU (European Association of Urology) guidelines, need to be introduced in order to prevent overtreatment and over-diagnosis of asymptomatic prostate cancer
Autoantibodies to the NMDA Receptor in Schizophrenia: A Literature Review
Get PDFSchizophrenia is a chronic mental illness characterised by positive and negative symptoms, and cognitive dysfunction. The aetiology of the condition is poorly understood; among the various proposed hypotheses are theories involving glutamate transmission and autoimmunity. The N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) is an ionotropic glutamate receptor expressed widely in the CNS, it is involved in long-term potentiation, memory and learning, and regulation of glutamatergic transmission via GABA-ergic interneurons. Pharmacological blockade of NMDARs induces positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia in healthy subjects, and exacerbates symptoms in patients. NMDA hypo-function has been demonstrated to cause localised glutamate excito-toxicity in schizophrenia. Anti-NMDAR auto-encephalitis is a recently described neuro-immune condition, which often presents with acute psychosis. Due to the behavioural symptoms caused by the condition, 65% of those who develop anti-NMDAR auto-encephalitis are initially seen by psychiatric services. Studies of anti-NMDAR antibody prevalence in schizophrenic patients and the general population have found conflicting results. Analysis is complicated by variance between studies in terms of antibody specificity and assays used. Further work in this expanding field will help delineate the exact relevance of antibody seropositivity to the development of schizophrenia or psychosis. Anti-NMDAR auto-encephalitis represents an important aetiological factor of psychosis to be considered in the clinical assessment of acute psychosis
Peter Hynes
Get PDFPeter Hynes, chief executive of an Irish local authority, described how local government was now much more about collaborative service delivery, place making and community development, projects in which the arts were seen as playing a central role.
It’s great to be here. A previous speaker spoke about being intimidated by the quality of speakers, well you should stand here as a former County Manager – we’ve been rebranded since the beginning of the month – it’s our first public address as the newly branded ‘Chief Executive’ of Mayo County Council
Postscript: Reflections on the Cultural Policy Conference, Belfield, UCD, June 2014
Get PDFRuairi Quinn, Minister for Education (2011-14), offered a reflection on the achievements of Irish cultural policy since the foundation of the state and the challenges and opportunities facing the Irish cultural sector as it recovered from the impact of the 2008 economic collapse.
Where do we begin, in the second decade of this century? Do we start to look for renewed directions for an Irish cultural policy that fits the contours of Ireland today? The answer must be yes
A Needs and Resources Assessment of Fiscal Equalisation in the Irish Local Government System
Get PDFIn 2000 the central government in Ireland introduced a formula-based needs and resources equalisation model in its local government system to ensure that the allocation of general purpose grants to local authorities was done in an equitable manner. However, the equalisation model is lacking in transparency, with few details publicly available as to its exact specification. Within this context, the purpose of this paper is to critically assess fiscal equalisation in Ireland’s local government system. More specifically we address the question of whether general purpose equalisation grants bear any relation to expenditure needs and fiscal resources. We achieve this by estimating our own model based upon a number of indicators of potential need and available resources. We outline a number of alternative equalisation models based on different objective criteria, and compare the simulated allocations resulting from the alternative models to the actual general purpose grants, with a view to partly explaining past allocations but also identifying improvements in the future design of fiscal equalisation in Ireland. Our findings show politically sensitive redistribution away from county councils towards city councils, resulting in new winners and losers. The results for Dublin City Council raise the question of whether, given its population size, level of economic activity and budget, it should be treated separately and as a special case with respect to intergovernmental fiscal relations in Ireland
Conference Organisers’ Introduction
No full textMapping an Altered Landscape: cultural policy and management in Ireland since 2008 arose out of a need to reflect on changes in cultural policy and practice in Ireland since 2008
Gerry Godley
Get PDFGerry Godley, a founder member of the National Campaign for the Arts in Ireland (2008), reflected on the impact that the global economic recession had had on cultural policy and arts practice in Ireland.
I’m delighted to be here today and to be part of this forum and I’m looking forward to everything that will unfold, particularly the perspective of artists who are among us
Irish SME Property Exposure: What Do We Know?
Get PDFAn overhang relating to the pre-crisis property investment of Irish Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) has been identified as a potential drag on a recovery in employment, investment and output. This paper aims to provide information from survey and loan-level data which can help to quantify the extent of firms’ property-related borrowing. Survey data show that a minimum of one-fifth of Irish SMEs have direct exposure to property debt. Loan-level data show that at least 10 per cent of firms with bank debt have exposure to property investment at the same bank, with this figure rising to 16 per cent when including Buy-To-Let mortgages for a subset of the data. Data on loan default suggest that property-related borrowing has had a detrimental impact on firms: SMEs with property-related borrowings have a loan default rate of 43 per cent, compared to 23 per cent for those without property exposure
The Holy Grail of Tissue Engineering? Islet Cell Microencapsulation in Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
Get PDFThe immunoisolation of transplanted islet cells represents a promising future therapy for the treatment of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Microencapsulation is one avenue being explored to restore insulin independence while simultaneously protecting islet cells from destruction by the immune system. A variety of techniques have been developed to encapsulate the islet cells, with alginate being the most commonly employed biomaterial. The great challenge in microencapsulation is to ensure that the capsule is permselective, allowing for the free diffusion of oxygen, nutrients and waste products while providing an effective barrier to cytokines and immune identification. Other alternatives including nanoencapsulation and conformal coating are emerging. In vivo work is now beginning to be translated into clinical trials