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The purpose of this study was to develop a valid and reliable assessment tool to measure music educators' participation in and perceptions of their high-quality professional development (PD) experiences. A sample of 450 in-service music educators across the United States completed a 78-item rating scale embedded within 10 domains reflecting high-quality PD criteria: (a) content, (b) evidence/research, (c) coherence, (d) relevance, (e) active learning, (f) application, (g) collaboration, (h) reflection, (i) feedback, and (j) duration. Participants also answered the open-ended question, "What are some adjectives you would use to describe your overall professional development experiences?" Data were analyzed using Rasch measurement analyses and sentiment analyses. Results indicated an overall acceptable data-to-model fit, with the content domain reflecting most participation and the duration domain reflecting least participation. Bias analyses suggested that music educators received systematically different quality PD experiences based upon their teaching area and/or grade-level emphases. Participants had an overall positive sentiment of their PD experiences, which positively correlates with the level of quality PD they experienced (r = 0.42, p < 0.05). The most frequent emotions of the participants were trust and joy. Implications for the development and programming of PD in the field of music education are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to develop a valid and reliable assessment tool to measure music educators' participation in and perceptions of their high-quality professional development (PD) experiences. A sample of 450 in-service music educators across the United States completed a 78-item rating scale embedded within 10 domains reflecting high-quality PD criteria: (a) content, (b) evidence/research, (c) coherence, (d) relevance, (e) active learning, (f) application, (g) collaboration, (h) reflection, (i) feedback, and (j) duration. Participants also answered the open-ended question, "What are some adjectives you would use to describe your overall professional development experiences?" Data were analyzed using Rasch measurement analyses and sentiment analyses. Results indicated an overall acceptable data-to-model fit, with the content domain reflecting most participation and the duration domain reflecting least participation. Bias analyses suggested that music educators received systematically different quality PD experiences based upon their teaching area and/or grade-level emphases. Participants had an overall positive sentiment of their PD experiences, which positively correlates with the level of quality PD they experienced (r = 0.42, p <.05). The most frequent emotions of the participants were trust and joy. Implications for the development and programming of PD in the field of music education are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to propose a methodology that practice-based screenwriters can employ to remodel an existing character framework for the writing of a commercially viable anti-heroine teleplay. Historically, we are at a time in which more nuanced and authentic female-based screenplays, which subvert traditional representations of gender, are demanded. To date, anti-heroine characters and publications have been scarce, causing the market to tread carefully due to the perceived financial risk associated. The following methodology proposed offers a robust procedure to revise an existing anti-hero framework into one for the anti-heroine. The author used this methodology for their own practice-based Ph.D. thesis where a major component of the research comprised the development of an anti-heroine teleplay that would be considered for production. The industrial nature of the research aim required the inclusion of traditional research methods prior to practice. For example, the need to conduct textual analysis on case study anti-heroine shows and engage with relevant theory to define an intended audience. Due to the use of some traditional research methods, this could leave the methodology in dispute as practice-based. Before proposing the methodological framework, such concern will be addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The principal techniques used in the physical characterization of thin-film solar cells and materials are reviewed, these being scanning probe microscopy (SPM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), spectroscopic ellipsometry, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), secondary-ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), photoluminescence and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL), electron-beam-induced current (EBIC) and light-beam-induced current (LBIC). For each method the particular applicability to thin-film solar cells is highlighted. Examples of the use of each are given, these being drawn from the chalcopyrite, CdTe, Si and III–V materials systems. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]